Plummeting in Love
by moi-moi819
Summary: Book 1. It was like an intimidating admiration. Being around her was comparable to a moth being drawn in to a flame. Looking at her, one word came to mind: Beautiful. And yet, he could feel every fiber of his being telling him to run for the hills. VladXOC. THIS STORY IS COMPLETE ON WATTPAD.
1. The Enigma that is Daniel Fenton

_Blanket Disclaimer: moi-moi819 does not own Danny Phantom or any of its affiliated titles therein. All original characters are the property of moi-moi819. This is a nonprofit fan fiction. No copyright infringement was intended. Please support the official release._

Moi-Moi: Hello everyone! I'll try not to take up too much of your time. There's a few things you should know before you proceed.

1) **Phantom Planet NEVER happened.** Personally, I felt like the series finale was a rushed effort at ending the show. Some things could have been done better, like Tucker becoming Mayor (he's not even a legal adult yet. Seriously?) or Danny revealing his secret to the whole world (why not just whisper "I'll see you at home mom and dad" and then fly off? Why change in front of EVERYONE?). Of course this means that Danny and Sam aren't together. If this bothers you, I am genuinely sorry but that's the way the cookie crumbles. Personally, I don't like Sam all that much (here comes the fan rage) and I dislike the idea of her with Danny. :-/

If I've already lost you, feel free to click away. I had to get the big one out of the way first.

2) **This trilogy will have OCs.** I've created a new family of original characters just for this trilogy. I really hope that you all grow to love them as much as I already do.

3) **Yes, this IS a trilogy.** You can expect two stories to follow this one (in their own sweet time). I've already got the plots, titles, covers, and everything else all sorted. An I'm SO EXCITED.

4) **Like some of my other stories, this one is** **available on Wattpad.** I'm not gonna lie. I LOVE Wattpad. I still upload my stories here on , but Wattpad is generally where my chapters come out first and much earlier. I'd rather you all read this story on Wattpad, but obviously I can't force you.

Finally, I hope that you enjoy this story and its sequels as much as I do. I really want you guys to comment as much as you can, too. There's nothing I love more than to have a conversation with my readers. Writing is more than just a way for me to express my creativity. It's a way for me to connect with others and have a conversation about a mutual love. Anyways, I'll let you guys go.

Welcome to my Danny Phantom Trilogy (that doesn't have an official name as of yet)!

~:~

Danny's baby blue eyes glanced at the clock that was being hung on the wall for the tenth time in the last five minutes. His fingernails drummed on the top of his desk as he rested left his cheek on the palm of his left hand. Somehow, the sixteen-year-old was able to pull off looking bored and anxious at the same time. His right heel started to tap on the floor as his eyes jumped to the clock again. _'Come on...Come on_...'

"Looking at the clock every thirty seconds won't make time move any faster, Mr. Fenton," Mr. Lancer chided Danny from his desk at the front of the room. The overweight teacher had been interrupted from his book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by the sound of Danny's tapping heel. At the teen's loud groan, Mr. Lancer went back to his book. He couldn't understand what would make Danny late almost _every_ morning. The boy would sometimes suddenly burst into his classroom looking worse for wear and out of breath. He'd stutter some excuse before quietly taking his seat and proceeding to whisper to his friends, Samantha ( _Sam_ , as she preferred to be called) Manson and Tucker Foley.

Lancer had seen many troubled teens in his time as a teacher, but he had never seen a case like Danny's. Most troubled teens were rude, obnoxious, disrespectful, and poor students. It didn't take much effort to spot them. But Danny was different. Aside from the normal amount of teenage disrespect, Daniel Fenton was a good kid. The only trouble Mr. Lancer could spot was that boy constantly looked tired and sometimes battered. (Mr. Lancer had always been extremely concerned at those times, but Danny always brushed off the concern.) There were other times that left Mr. Lancer stumped. Sometimes, Danny would act far too mature and wise for someone his age. It was as if Danny had been through something... Mr. Lancer couldn't find the word to describe it. And that was an astounding thing, considering he was an English teacher.

Danny slumped forward on his desk. Detention was the _worst_. If it weren't for Skulker suddenly appearing this morning and attempting to try out his newest upgrade to his armor, Danny wouldn't have been late to first period. What made it even worse? He was up late last night chasing the Box Ghost around the town. As weak and annoying as he was, the Box Ghost sure knew how to run away when the going got rough. Nonetheless, Danny wasn't looking forward to hearing anyone shout " _Beware_!" any time soon. Stifling a yawn, Danny rubbed his tired eyes.

Mr. Lancer glanced up from his book in time to see Danny's barely hidden yawn. Mentally sighing, Mr. Lancer closed his book and shot Danny a level gaze. "Mr. Fenton, I will be right back. You are not allowed to leave and if I return and you're not here, I will be calling your parents _tonight_. Do I make myself clear?" Mr. Lancer questioned while rising. He didn't bother to wait for Danny's response as he made his way to the classroom door. Lancer made his way towards the teacher's lounge, intent on spending the rest of the detention period there. He normally had a strict "No Sleeping" policy in his detention periods. But he supposed that if he wasn't there to enforce it, it temporarily didn't apply. Danny looked like he could use a rest anyways. Even if it was only for half an hour.

Danny watched Mr. Lancer leave before he quickly stretched out and took his phone out of his pocket. He saw that had three unread messages, one from Jazz, Tucker, and of course Sam.

 **Jazz: Where are you!? Is there a ghost? You're not with Sam and Tucker. Danny?**

With a roll of his eyes and a small smile on his face, Danny quickly replied.

 **Relax. There's no ghost. I got detention. Skulker made me late.**

Jazz was always on his back about keeping in contact with her. This was her last summer in Amity Park before she had to leave for college. Jazz was doing everything that she possibly could to help Danny and keep their parents off his back before she left. Danny wasn't sure how he would be able to go back to how his life was before Jazz knew his secret. Danny went through his other messages.

 **Tuck: Sorry u got detention dude. That sucks. Sam really wanted us to hang together after school since she's leaving bright and early tomm.**

 **Danny: I know. I'll see you guys in 30 mins.**

Danny sighed audibly while checking Sam's message. He didn't need to be reminded that his best friends weren't spending the summer in Amity Park. He wanted summer vacation to start as soon as possible, but he wasn't looking forward to spending the summer without his friends.

 **Sam: How r u? U looked terrible when u came in to class this morning.**

Danny actually laughed. Sam was always worrying about him, despite knowing that he had a higher tolerance for pain, accelerated healing factor, and superhuman durability. With a small smile on his face, Danny replied.

 **I'm fine now. Lancer just left. I might take a little nap. See you and Tuck in a bit.**

With that, Danny put his phone away before stretching out over his desk and closing his eyes. He would only rest his eyes for a bit. He only needed a few minutes to recharge.

~:~

Mr. Lancer opened his classroom door at exactly 4:00, making sure to do so with as little noise as possible. Stepping into the room, Mr. Lancer spotted Danny passed out and drooling on his desk in the middle of the room. Mr. Lancer folded his arms with a narrowed gaze before a softer look overtook his features. Shaking his head with a sigh, Mr. Lancer approached the sleeping boy.

"Mr. Fenton..." Mr. Lancer called out in an agitated drawl.

It took a few seconds, but the boy eventually blinked his eyes open before looking around him drowsily. Mr. Lancer patiently waited for Danny to regain his bearings. When the boy's blue eyes glanced up at him in nervous guilt, Mr. Lancer raised a brow. "Oh _man_ ," he groaned softly.

"If you're tired, may I suggest that you sleep at _home_ , Mr. Fenton?"

"I'm _really_ sorry, Mr. Lancer. It was an accident! I-"

Mr. Lancer raised a hand to silence the boy. With a patient and slightly sympathetic look, Mr. Lancer said, "Mr. Fenton, I've have known you for quite some time. While I know that you are not a perfect student, I know that you are capable of much more. This school year is over. May I suggest that you take this summer to reevaluate what's important? You will be a junior. Perhaps it is time you think long and hard about where you wish to go in life? High school will not last forever."

Danny could only stare up at his teacher in silence. After a few seconds, he nodded and reached down to grab his bag. "I... I'll see you next year, Mr. Lancer," Danny said as he was about to leave.

"Of course you will. Principal Ishyama feels that I would make a good junior homeroom and english teacher," Mr. Lancer said with a smirk. "It appears that you can't get rid of me just yet, Mr. Fenton. Have a good summer, Danny."

With two, stunned blinks, Danny watched Mr. Lancer leave and head down the hall towards the teacher's lounge. With a shake of his head, Danny went the opposite way towards the front entrance. He was sure that Lancer would have laid into him for falling asleep in detention. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Danny quickly rushed through the halls.

Casper High's grounds were completely deserted, summer already in full swing. Once he was out in the deserted open, Danny quickly changed into his ghostly alter ego and took to the skies. With a loud whoop as he flew, Danny pulled out his phone to text his friends that he was on his way.

 **Tuck: cool! We're at the nasty burger.**

Flying was one of his favorite things about being half-ghost. He could literally touch the skies. And flying at night? The _best_ feeling in the world. The freedom that flying gave him was like a small reprieve from reality.

"Mom! Look! It's Danny Phantom!"

He heard a little boy cry out excitedly below him. Glancing down at the sound, Danny offered a friendly wave to the blonde boy. Instantly, his face lit up and he proceeded to tug urgently on his mother's arm while pointing up at the sky.

" _Look_ , mom!"

Danny continued on his way, his spirits slightly lifted. It was nice to not be looked at as a menace or a monster anymore. Well, 87% of the town now saw him as a hero according to the latest polls. He'd really busted his hump to keep his town safe. Granted, he wasn't asking for statues of him to be put up everywhere, but it was nice to be appreciated just a little bit.

Landing in the alley next to the Nasty Burger, Danny quickly changed back to his human self and ran around to the front entrance of the burger joint. He was suddenly queued in to the sound of someone calling his name. Sam and Tucker were sitting in a booth and waving him over.

"Hey guys. Sorry I'm late," Danny said with a small smile. He slipped into the booth and took his seat next to Sam and across from Tucker.

"No worries, dude. We got you something," Tucker said and pushed a tray with a double cheeseburger and fries over to his best friend.

"Thanks," Danny said just before digging in.

"What happened with Skulker? You know you could have called us. Right?" Sam questioned Danny urgently over her greek salad.

"He attacked me out of the blue. I would have called, but he caught me off guard. Besides, I could have taken him. I didn't want to drag you guys into it," Danny replied.

"We're your _friends_ , Danny. You can _always_ call us," Sam stressed.

"Yeah, dude," Tucker supplied as he took a bite out of his burger.

"Alright guys. I hear you. But it's not like Skulker is that much of a threat anymore. I'd kick his butt easily in a fair fight," Danny bragged.

"Whose but could _you_ kick, Fen- _turd_?"

Danny sighed with a roll of his eyes. The three teens shared an exasperated look just before Dash appeared at the side of their table. His large hands slammed down onto the tabletop just before he smirked superiorly down at Danny. "Go away, Dash. I'm not up to dealing with you right now."

"Feeling _brave_? Huh, Fenton?" Dash said with a grin.

Danny sighed again before focusing on channeling his ghostly core. Pulling up as much energy as he could tap into while in his human form, Danny formed an invisible copy of himself that flew out of his body. The copy quickly flew into Dash's body and overtook him.

Dash's eyes shifted to green for a second before he grinned brightly and moved into the middle of the restaurant. "HEY EVERYBODY! MY NAME IS DASH BAXTER AND I'M SECRETLY A BALLERINA!" Dash shouted just before attempting to perform a split leap. He proceeded to crash into a table and slump to the floor with a groan. Several people laughed at the sight while others refrained from doing so. The last thing they wanted was to get on the jock's bad side once he got back up. Releasing his hold from Dash's body, Danny quickly reabsorbed the clone.

Tucker snickered loudly with tears forming in the corner of his eyes. Danny laughed as well while holding his gut. Sam frowned at Danny, but didn't say anything.

"Man, that was awesome," Tucker said to Danny just as Dash pulled himself up from the ground with a confused look. He clutched his blonde head just as Kwan ushered him out of the restaurant.

"I'm getting better. I can't do it for too long, but that was just long enough," Danny grinned.

"Danny, don't you think that you shouldn't be using your powers like that?" Sam questioned.

"Oh _come_ _on_ , Sam. You can't tell me that you aren't happy Dash's gone. At least we can finish hanging out in peace," Danny replied. "Just forget about Dash. He's the _last_ thing I want to talk to you guys about before you leave."

" _Ugh_. Don't remind me. A three month long, world cruise with my parents and grandma? Just kill me now," Sam groaned.

"At least it's better than my parents' excuse. They're dragging me with them on a road trip across the country to visit family," Tucker griped.

The amount of ghost attacks that had been occurring lately had risen to an astounding high, despite Danny Phantom's best efforts. Some of the parents in town felt that it would be in the best interests of their families (and most importantly their children) if they got out of town for the summer while the kids no longer had attend school. The Foleys and Mansons were some of these parents, choosing to avoid conflict by spending their summers far away from the most haunted town in the continental US. Fortunately (or unfortunately) for Danny, his parents wouldn't _dream_ of leaving their town unprotected for an entire summer.

"You gonna be alright on your own, Danny?" Sam questioned with a sympathetic frown.

"Yeah. Jazz will still be here. Don't worry guys. I've been doing this for two years. I'll be fine," Danny tried to reassure his friends. Sam shot Tucker a disbelieving look that the boy returned with a shrug.

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to review! :)


	2. TV Commercial Beauty

Moi-Moi: You know… You could have read this chapter two days ago on my Wattpad account. It's under moi-moi819. The title of the story is the same there… Just saying.

Don't forget to review! :D

~:~

Maddie Fenton pulled open the door to the oven just a crack just before peering inside the hot box. A smile graced her face as she watched her cookies finish baking. Normally, Maddie wasn't the best cook. She really tried her best to provide balanced, nutritional meals for her family. She never meant for some of her food to become _contaminated_. It usually wasn't her fault either. Jack would sometimes use the stove or microwave for whatever experiment he was running, despite how many times Maddie had specifically told him that chemicals DON'T belong anywhere out of the lab.

"There. All done!" Maddie exclaimed with a grin before pulling the cookies out of the oven. She had prepared two dozen of her special chocolate chip cookies- one dozen for her family (but mostly Jack) and the other for her new neighbors.

Maddie had noticed the moving trucks last week while her kids were at school. She had been coming home from grocery shopping when she had seen two, We-Haul vans parked across the street in front of the old Robinson house. She had wanted to see who it was who was moving into the neighborhood, but she hadn't spotted anyone but the movers. Maddie was sure that a family had moved in within the past week and so she had prepared a welcoming gift for them.

Hearing the sound of bare feet padding on the tile behind her, Maddie spared a glance backwards. A bright smile lit up her face. "Good morning, Danny. Did you sleep well?" Maddie questioned her youngest.

Danny still had his bed head on full blast as he shuffled over to the refrigerator in his pajamas- a tee shirt and loose, navy pajama pants. He pulled the carton of orange juice out of the fridge before getting a glass from the cupboard. "It was alright," Danny responded in a sleep-ridden voice while filling the glass.

Maddie smiled softly to herself. It was a small change, but Maddie was sure that she had heard the tell-tale signs of her baby's voice deepening. In the past month, she'd noticed Danny's slight growth spurt. And if she looked _closely_ she could see hints of beard stubble. Her baby was growing up. The thought almost made her tear up slightly.

"Why'd you make so many cookies, mom? Are all these for dad?" Danny questioned with a surprised expression as he sipped his juice.

"Oh no, dear. I made some cookies for our new neighbors across the street," Maddie said as she placed the cookies on a cooling rack.

"We have new neighbors?"

"Oh, _Danny_. You haven't noticed the moving vans?" Maddie questioned. At the blank expression she received from her son, Maddie shook her head with a small smile. "I'm thinking of inviting them over for dinner, too."

"Inviting who over dinner? Are those _cookies_!?" Jack questioned just as he appeared in the kitchen clutching some new, ghost hunting equipment. Maddie nearly sighed in exasperation.

"Our new neighbors from across the street. I'm going to deliver these cookies to them and then invite them over for dinner tonight," Maddie explained.

Jack's eyes widened as he snatched a cookie from the tray. "Great idea, Mads! We need to inform them on the risks of moving to Amity Park. We should also let them know that they have nothing to fear while the Fenton are here!"

Danny watched his parents for a few more seconds before leaving the kitchen with a cookie and glass of juice in hand. He was about to take the stairs back up to his room when the front door suddenly opened. He turned in time to see Jazz entering looking flushed in the face and sweaty. "Morning, Danny," Jazz greeted with a smile.

"Morning, Jazz. Have a good run?"

"Yep! I feel ready to take on anything," Jazz replied with a bright grin. Danny turned to leave, but Jazz quickly called out to him. "Hey, Danny! Why don't we do something together today? We can go to the water park or the mall?" Jazz suggested.

Danny stared down at his sister from the steps. He could see the expectant hope in Jazz's eyes. He knew that she wasn't offering to spend the day with him just because they were now closer. She felt obligated to spend time with him since Tucker and Sam had already left town days ago and she would be leaving before the summer's end. To be honest, Danny felt that he should at least _try_ to get out of the house. But, he just wasn't up for it yet. "Maybe some other time, Jazz. I promise."

Jazz sighed softly as she watched Danny climb the stairs. This wasn't healthy for Danny. He couldn't spend his entire vacation locked up in his room. Not only was it detrimental to his mental health, it would negatively affect his physical health as well! She would just have to force Danny to go outside. But how?

~:~

Danny quickly punched in the chest code for full health on his game controller without blinking. He was on the final, boss level of DOOM 3 and was currently replaying the game. Once the "WINNER" message flashed across his screen, Danny sighed before tossing away his controller. Danny had never realized how much his friends played into his daily life until they had left. It made him wonder what would happen once it was time for them to go to college. Surely Tucker would get into some advanced tech school like MIT and Sam would be able to go anywhere. Money and grades weren't an issue for her. But where did that leave him? Suddenly, Mr. Lancer's words came back to Danny.

Danny rubbed his hands over his face before glancing out his window. The sun was about to go down. Maybe he could go out for a night flight through the town?

"Danny? Are you dressed?" Danny heard his mother's voice call out to him through the bedroom door.

"Yeah, mom."

Pushing his door open, Maddie stepped into the room with her eyes going to her son. She frowned at once. " _Danny_ ," she chided. "You said you were dressed."

Danny looked down at his pajamas. "I _am_ ," he insisted. It's not like he was naked.

"Danny, I meant dressed for dinner. I told you that we would be having guests over. Honestly, Danny. Get dressed and then come downstairs. They'll be here any minute," Maddie said before leaving the room.

Danny sighed in exasperation before rising off his beanbag chair and moving over to his dresser. He pulled his usual white tee shirt out of a highly disorganized drawer before grabbing his light blue jeans out of his closet. His nighttime flight would have to happen after everyone went to sleep then.

Once he was appropriately dressed, Danny left his room and headed towards the stairs. He could hear his parents talking to someone else in enthusiastic voices.

" _We, Fentons, do everything we can to keep this town safe from the threat of ghosts_!"

That was his dad.

" _We've noticed a rise in ghostly activity lately, but even that seems to be dropping_..."

His mom had just spoken.

" _Well, that's good news. At least it will be safe for the children. But I was hoping to see a few ghosts_."

That must be the new neighbor. It was a woman. Her voice sounded a pitch higher than his mother's, but not so high that it would be annoying. Finally turning the corner at the end of the hall, Danny started making his way down the stairs.

"Oh! This is our son, Danny. Come say hello, sweetie," Maddie said and gestured to Danny.

Danny nearly blushed at his mother's affectionate nickname, but pushed down his embarrassment. Instead, he faced the new woman in the room. She was obviously of Asian descent with dark brown eyes and long, dark hair that was pinned back. She looked to be in her mid-thirties. She was rather petite and extremely beautiful. She had a soft face that held a kind, motherly aura. She wore a navy button down top and black slacks with a pair of black pumps. She smiled brightly up at Danny from her seat on the couch next to two teenagers. "Hello, Danny. My name is Kimiko. This is my daughter, Kagome, and my son, Judai," she said as she reached out her hand in a handshake.

Danny accepted the handshake before looking to the teens she had introduced. Ever since he had gotten over his crush on Paulina, Danny was doing better at not falling for girls _just_ because they were pretty. "Hi, Danny. It's nice to meet you," the girl named Kagome said with a smile. She offered him her hand as well and it took him a few seconds to get the muscles in his arm to work properly.

"Yeah... Nice to meet you too," Danny replied.

Kagome looked a lot like her mother, despite being an inch or two shorter. She had the same long, dark hair and dark eyes. Her hair was flowing loosely down her back with her side bangs partially covering her forehead. She was wearing a short sleeved dress with light pink top and a flowy, black skirt that stopped mid-thigh. She had on a pair on light pink ballet flats and a golden charm bracelet. Honestly, she looked like one of those girls in commercials on TV that talked about their smooth, flawless skin. She even had that nice, movie star smile! Danny would have smiled back if he didn't feel so uneasy about her all of a sudden.

Kimiko's son was sitting on the couch and ignoring everyone. He looked to be about thirteen and was dressed in a black long sleeved shirt with a navy tee over it and a pair of dark jeans and converse. He had a large pair of headphones hung around his neck and was tapping away at his phone with a look of boredom on his face.

"Why don't we let the kids get acquainted for a while?" Maddie suggested.

"Yeah! We can show you our lab! We've got some cutting edge stuff, Kim," Jack said before quickly ushering Kimiko out of the room with Maddie at his side.

Danny swallowed before turning to sister and then Kagome. Jazz watched Danny stand and stare at the girl awkwardly for a few seconds before she decided to step in. This is what she was talking about! Danny needed normal, teenage interactions, especially ones that didn't revolve around ghosts. "So, where are you guys from?"

"We moved here from Japan," Kagome answered.

"Why would you move to Amity Park of all places?" Jazz questioned with a raised brow. There had been talk in the news of the town's population slowly declining because of all the paranormal attacks. Why would anyone want to _move_ here?

"My mom is an ecto-biologist and she's starting to take up ecto-psychology. She wanted to move here to gather some data since the town has so many ghost sightings," Kagome explained.

"Your mom doesn't _look_ like a ghost hunter," Danny inputted.

"That's because she's not. She prefers to study ghosts from afar rather than hunt them," Kagome said.

"So, it must be pretty tough moving to somewhere new. Your English is very good though," Jazz said.

"It's not that new. Aside from her ghost studies, my mom designs clothes and she's spent the past few years traveling in order to gain inspiration for her clothing lines. I think she's trying to open a boutique here in Amity

Park in addition to studying ghosts," Kagome explained. "We've kind of moved around a bit because of it. After a while, you tend to pick up on a few languages."

"Which languages do you speak?" Jazz asked, now intrigued.

"I can speak four different languages- Japanese, English, Spanish, and French. Judai can speak them as well, but our mom knows way more languages."

"That's so cool. Right, Danny?"

"Huh? Oh yeah. Cool," Danny offered sheepishly. He tried to ignore the blush moving up his face. He hadn't just spent the last few minutes staring at Kagome had he? Danny contemplated going back up to his room and waiting until everyone left. Maybe he wouldn't die of embarrassment then. Suddenly, he could hear his parents returning. He nearly breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe dinner would go by quickly? He could hope.

~:~

Everyone had gathered in the Fenton's dining room for dinner. Honestly, Danny couldn't remember the last time his family had eaten in here. They usually ate at the table in the kitchen, but tonight they needed the extra room to accommodate their guests. Pushing his peas around, Danny resolutely stared at his half-finished meal.

"So, Kagome will be going to Casper High in the fall? That's wonderful! Danny goes there, too," Maddie said. Danny nearly groaned. "Jazz just graduated. She's going to Stanford on a full scholarship."

"I know what it's like to have little ones leave the nest. My two eldest sons have already moved out and started their own lives. The eldest in living with his girlfriend in London while the second is going to school in California," Kimiko said.

Danny glanced up from his peas quickly to look across the table at Kagome. She was cutting into her steak, her eyes trained on her food. Quickly, Danny looked away. He had hoped that his nerves would ebb as dinner went on as long as he could manage to be as invisible as possible, no pun intended. But, that wasn't the case. His nerves kept mounting and he kept feeling the urge to leave the table as quickly as he could. Heck, maybe even leave the house entirely.

"You know what? I just had a great idea. Danny, why don't you show Kagome and Judai around Amity Park tomorrow?" Maddie suggested.

" _Me_?" Danny questioned with a wide-eyes expression.

"That's a great idea, mom!" Jazz jumped in. "I can't do it because I have some paperwork to fill out for Stanford and last minute shopping to do for my dorm, but I'm sure Danny could handle it." Here was her chance to get Danny out the house! And even better? He could meet new people, too.

"That does sound like a good idea. It'll be good for you to get acclimated to the city. Right, Kagome?" Kimiko questioned her daughter with a small smile.

"Um... Right, mom. It sounds great," Kagome responded with a hesitant smile. Danny nearly dropped his face right into his mashed potatoes.

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to comment and vote for this chapter!


	3. Street Brawlers IV

Danny sighed and pulled his tee shirt over his head as he stood in front of his bedroom mirror. His family had practically thrown him under the proverbial bus and offered him up to give Kagome and her brother a tour of Amity Park. A part of him wanted to remain hopeful that the day wouldn't be a complete waste of time. After seeing Judai's lack of interest in anything not on his phone last night, Danny was reluctant to believe that this day with the Takahashi siblings would go well.

He'd had more than enough experience with girls like Kagome. Maybe he was being a bit judgmental, but the impossibly pretty, well-dressed, and seemingly flawless type usually were quite cruel to anyone they deemed beneath them on the official Teenage Coolness Meter. She may have acted nice to him last night, but that could have just been because their parents were around. Nonetheless, he had to at least try to get along with her. If he was uncharacteristically lucky, a ghost would attack while they were out.

Leaving his room and slowly descending the staircase to the first floor, Danny tried to bide his time as much as he could. On his way down, Danny spotted Jazz relaxing on the couch with a book in her hands. Danny narrowed his gaze at her. "I thought you had paperwork to fill out and shopping to do, Jazz," Danny spoke up as he approached his sister with his arms folded over his chest.

Jazz looked up at her little brother with a bright smile before speaking, "I do. I'm just getting a bit of reading in before I leave. You should probably get going though. You should start early if you want to get a head start on the tour."

Danny nearly growled. Instead, he shot his sister one, final dirty look before turning to leave. He didn't even bother to acknowledge her when she bid him a final goodbye. Stepping out into the bright, morning sun, Danny shielded his eyes with his hand before descending the front steps and crossing the street. Once he was across, he stared up at the blue-bricked, two-story building. After several seconds, he walked up the short, white steps and knocked on the bright white, front door.

It took a few seconds, but eventually someone pulled the door open. Danny was met with the sight of a smoky-eyed Kimiko wearing a red, short-sleeved, knee-length bodycon dress. She smiled brightly at him in greeting. "Good morning, Danny. Come on in," Kimiko said before stepping to the side to allow Danny entrance into her home.

"Uh, thanks," Danny said as he entered. He immediately looked around the relatively bare living room with observant eyes. This house was styled quite similar to his own except for its lack of decoration. The family had yet to fully move in. He could even see the black and white themed kitchen through the doorway off to the left.

"Are you hungry? Thirsty? I can get you something if you like," Kimiko offered.

"No, thank you. I'm okay," Danny said with a shake of his head.

"Okay. If you say so," Kimiko said before turning and walking towards the staircase at the back of the room. "Kagome! Judai! Danny's here!" Kimiko shouted upstairs before walking back into the kitchen. She muttered to herself in a language Danny couldn't understand, but he guessed that it was Japanese. It sounded like the language the characters in Tucker's Japanese video games spoke.

Danny was suddenly distracted by the sounds of feet coming down the stairs. Turning back to the staircase, Danny spotted Kagome descending the steps one at a time. She was wearing a loose, black tank today with a pair of light blue shorts, grey cardigan, and white converse. Once she had reached the bottom of the stairs, she offered Danny a small smile that he instantly felt obligated to return. She still looked as flawless as she had last night. Did she spend hours in the bathroom like Jazz normally did? For some reason, Danny highly doubted it. Something about her appearance seemed effortless. "Morning, Danny," she greeted him.

Before he could respond, Kimiko suddenly appeared from the kitchen while trying to put on a pair of dangly, silver earrings. "Kagome, where's your brother?" Kimiko questioned.

"He left with his skateboard a while ago. He has his phone with him. I can call him if you want?" Kagome suggested.

Kimiko rolled her eyes with a noise of slight frustration. "Don't bother. I'll talk to him later. Right now, I _really_ have to go. Things haven't been going so well at the shop so I've got to go in," Kimiko started and picked up a black briefcase from near the door. She gripped a pair of black heels and quickly slipped them on with a few, small hops. "You kids have fun. I may be home late, Kagome. Can you get dinner started for me?"

"Sure, mama."

"Great. Bye guys!" Kimiko said before rushing out the front door.

As soon as the door slammed shut, Danny could instantly feel the awkwardness that accompanied the resulting silence. _'Just say something_!' he shouted at himself. This was getting ridiculous. He'd fought against some of the strongest, biggest, fiercest ghosts that the Ghost Zone had to offer. He could talk to a pretty girl. "So, you ready to go?" he asked. _'Smooth one, Fenton_.'

"Yep," Kagome responded and opened the door for them. The two teens left the house and Kagome locked the door behind them. Descending the steps together, they made their way down the sidewalk. An uncomfortable silence descended on the pair, but what could you talk about with someone you literally met hours ago? Danny was seriously starting to question his abilities to properly socialize with anyone who wasn't in his circle of friends when Kagome spoke up. "I'm really sorry about this, Danny."

"Huh? Sorry about what?" Danny questioned with a confused expression.

Kagome shot him a sympathetic look. "Our parents practically forced you to do this. I'm sorry if you had to cancel your plans for me."

 _'Plans... Right. Level 77 on Goo Monsters 5 is a top priority right now._ ' "It's okay. Really. I don't mind," Danny placated.

"You have to admit, they did kind of dump me on you. It's not like you can say no to your parents when they put you on the spot like that," Kagome said with a knowing smile.

" _Totally_ ," Danny said with a groan.

After releasing a giggle, Kagome continued, "The way my mom was looking at me, I felt like she was daring me not to say yes last night. Oh well. I guess I'll have to lay in bed and finish my book some other time."

Danny shot Kagome a look out of the corner of his eyes. The idea that _she_ didn't want to spend the day touring the city hadn't even crossed his mind. "Well.. I guess we can make the best of the situation?" Danny offered with a hesitant shrug.

Kagome nodded once and said, "Right. So where are we going first?"

"Uh... Amity Park has a few things to do. We can go to the arcade, the mall, or the bowling alley? Or I can show you where the movie theater is? I mean, it's too early to see a movie now, but maybe later we can?" Danny said each statement like a question, sounding more unsure with each word. He didn't know the first thing about Kagome. What would she want to do? She must like to read. Maybe he could take her to the library?

"Those all sound great. Lead the way."

~:~

The arcade was cool and empty at nine in the morning. The black, space-themed carpets felt incredibly dirty and slightly sticky and there was a faint hint of buttery popcorn in the air. Kagome followed Danny as he approached several rows of video game machines. All the machines glowed brightly along with all the dirty stars and planets in the carpets. Kagome saw many game titles that she had never heard of and then a few of the more popular ones.

Danny had suddenly stopped in front of her and turned to her with an expectant look. "So, which game to do you want to play first?"

"Oh! Um..." Kagome trailed off as she looked around the room. To be honest, she wasn't much of a video game buff. Video games were more of her brother, Judai's thing. He could spend hours in front of a television fighting aliens, racing cars, or pretending to be an army soldier. "Which one is your favorite? We can play that."

"Okay. You don't have a favorite? Or are you just used to different games since you're from Japan?" Danny questioned as he lead her over to a machine that exchanged bills for quarters.

Kagome bit her lip. _'Why would you let him waste his time bringing you here?_ ' Danny wouldn't judge her if she said that she didn't like video games. Right? "To be honest, I'm not a big fan of video games." There. She said it. Danny gave her a surprised look before looking around at the machines with a troubled expression. Kagome quickly spoke up again, "But we can stay here. I've never really tried them. Maybe I'll like them after I give them a shot?"

"Okay. But if you want to leave at any time, just let me know..." Danny said.

Kagome felt a little guilty, but she tried not to acknowledge it too much. She watched Danny exchange a few bills for quarters before she did the same. Once they were stocked up, they made their way towards a machine with the words "Street Brawlers IV" scrawled all over it like orange graffiti.

"Okay. So first, we pick our characters," Danny instructed and put two quarters into the machine. He gripped the red joystick with his right hand and spread the fingers on his left hand over the buttons next to it. Kagome copied his movements before looking at the screen. It was divided down the middle with three rows of icons of playable characters. Kagome quickly started scanning through the faces. "Do you need help picking someone?" Danny questioned.

"Nope. I choose her," Kagome said and selected a brunette wearing a light blue Chinese dress with white, knee-length boots and tights. "I like her hair."

Danny chuckled softly. "You chose her because you like her _hair_?"

"Why not?" Kagome questioned with a small pout.

"I don't know. Most people choose their character based on special abilities and fighting strength," Danny informed her with a small smile.

"No one ever said that you couldn't kick butt and look good while doing it," Kagome replied just as the machine started playing some actiony music and the words "Round 1" flashed on the screen. Danny shook his head.

In her defense, she was still just a novice at this game. The controls were easy to understand, but it didn't matter when she was going up against a pro like Danny. He had made quick work of her in round one and then proceeded to thoroughly trounce her in rounds 2-4. Once the words "Player 1 Wins!" flashed on the screen for the fifth time and signaled the end of the game, Kagome groaned loudly and hung her head.

"You want to try something else?" Danny suggested.

"Of course not! That was a warm up. I'll beat you this time," Kagome promised and put in two more quarters.

"...If you say so..."

~:~

"Stop cheating!"

"I'm not cheating!"

"You just tried to push me out of the way!"

"I did _not_! Don't be such a _baby_ , Danny."

" _Player one wins! Game over!_ " the machine said for the third time. With a loud exhale, Kagome released her controls and stepped away from the machine. Danny watched her pout adorably before he started to laugh. After four games, Kagome had only managed to beat him once (by cheating, but she claimed that she was just playing the game).

"I think an hour is enough time spent on one video game," Kagome started. "Where to next?"

"We can just walk around town and I can show you where everything is if you want?" Danny suggested.

"Sure," Kagome replied with a smile.

Danny nodded as they left the arcade, passing some kids on their way out. Danny was surprised at how much fun playing video games with Kagome was. Despite not appreciating her cheating, she was actually a lot of fun to be around. Her enthusiasm was extremely catching. He had already played through all the games he had at home, but she hadn't. Maybe he could play them with her some other time?

"So, what's it like to live in Amity Park?" Kagome questioned him to make conversation.

"It's lively to say the least. But, I really like it here. It's not perfect, but it's home," Danny responded. "What's Japan like?"

" _Busy_. I love that there's always something to do, but I'm not a big fan of the crowds and rush hour."

"I don't really like crowds either. What do you normally do for fun?" Danny questioned. It was amazing how a few rounds of actively playing video games could knock down the imaginary barriers between them. Danny already felt much more relaxed in Kagome's presence. Granted, he still felt a little... _weird_ , but it was fading.

"Well, I like to read, play the violin and piano, and sing. I spent a lot of time going to karaoke bars with my friend, Rei."

Danny was mildly surprised to hear that she sang. He honestly hadn't been expecting that. "Do you miss your friends?"

"I didn't have too many friends back home. I had a lot of acquaintances, but I only had one, real friend. That was Rei. We grew up together and she moved to London with my oldest brother when they started dating," Kagome explained.

"I never would have guessed. I figured that you would have a lot of friends," Danny remarked.

"I get that a lot. Honestly, there are a lot of people who would be friends with you, but only a small amount of them are genuine. I'm okay with not having a lot of friends. I think I only really need one."

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to review! You KNOW you want to... ;)


	4. Sight Seeing

Moi-Moi: It's time to celebrate! I have officially posted ONE MILLION WORDS to FanFiction! It's party time! WHOO!

~:~

"So, this is the movie theater. I promise it's much livelier once the sun goes down," Danny narrated as he pointed out the movie theater to Kagome.

"I'd imagine so," Kagome agreed with smirk and giggle. She couldn't explain it. Danny was probably the nicest person that she could have been forced to spend time with. It was weird. Most boys would have already hit on her or be reduced to stuttering messes around her by now. Not that she was being cocky. It was just truth! In all honesty, Danny reminded her a lot of her second-eldest brother, Koharu. This was more than a good thing.

While Kagome considered herself close to all her family members, it wasn't a secret that Koharu was easily one of her best friends. They had always been close. After their mom had given birth to her, Koharu was always there to take care of and play with her. There were tons of pictures of Koharu pushing Kagome around in a stroller that was bigger than he was or playing Peek-A-Boo with her. Even as they grew up, Koharu was always looking out for her. Even though he was only two years older, Koharu was like a knight in shining armor. It had been difficult to deal with him moving to California- Los Angelos- to be specific.

Perhaps things wouldn't be so bad if Kagome could spend time with Danny now? She wasn't planning on replacing her brother. _Definitely_ not. But after losing two best friends at once, Kagome was in desperate need of companionship. Her mother always did her best to be there for her kids, but she was _so busy_ lately. Judai was a lost cause. He had sealed himself away in a bubble ever since their dad had left. Kagome highly doubted that she would be able to get through the next few months in Amity Park without someone to talk to.

Thankfully, Danny had been pushed along. But, would he still want to be friends once he no longer had to hold her hand and walk her around town? A boy like Danny must have tons of friends to hang out with. He was definitely nice, funny, and cool enough for it. Danny was much better suited to make friends. At least he wasn't some short, know-it-all who didn't have the _foggiest_ idea how to act like a normal teenager...

Blushing slightly, Danny continued on. "Then again, a lot of kids are out of town for the summer."

"Why is that? Is there some big event happening out of town?" Kagome questioned. Her knowledge of American culture was a little rusty, but she was sure that there wasn't any large event happening this summer.

"Not that I know of. Some of the parents just wanted to get away from all of the ghosts for a while. Amity Park is like a ghost town. No pun intended," Danny explained.

Kagome laughed again before nodding in acceptance. "I think my family is the only one crazy enough to move in when everyone is packing up for the summer," Kagome joked. "I am glad that you're still here though."

"Oh... Well... Uh...I'm glad I'm still here, too," Danny said while rubbing the back of his neck nervously. He tried to appear casual at Kagome's words, but he could still feel a twisty, nervous feeling in his gut. It was quick to pass though. "My parents would ever abandon Amity Park. They've got to protect the town," Danny said with a careless shrug.

"Does it scare you? Or worry you? Your parents are putting themselves in danger to protect the town," Kagome questioned with a concerned expression.

Danny was a bit surprised at how much compassion there was in her expression. Unlike most people who only _said_ that they cared, Kagome actually looked it. She didn't know him too well, and yet she was showing him more care than some of the people he had known for years. Danny felt suddenly grateful, despite not actually feeling _too_ concerned for his parents. Danny was always there to put himself in the direct line of fire and take the brunt of the attack. His parents were hardly ever in danger. Even when they were, he'd rather lose both his legs than let anything happen to them. "I'm not too worried. Not with Danny Phantom around fighting all the ghosts," Danny finally responded. He hoped that his tone sounded casual and didn't give anything away.

"Danny Phantom... I've seen a few videos of him on UTube. We _definitely_ don't have superheroes back home," Kagome replied.

"What do you think of him?" Danny asked with a careless tone. He even slipped his hands into his pockets while leaning back slightly. Was she buying it? He was totally pulling off the casual look.

"I don't know too much about him, but I like the good that he's doing. In a town like this, it's nice to see that there are some ghosts doing good. Sometimes, it's hard to remember that not all ghosts are troublemakers or just plain evil," Kagome remarked.

"Yeah. Don't tell my parents that though," Danny replied with a small scoff. "They're the shoot first, ask questions never type. A lot of ghost hunters are like that."

Kagome raised a brow at Danny's dismal tone. Danny must really like the ghostly superhero to be so bummed out about others disliking Danny Phantom. "I had no idea you were so fond of Danny Phantom. Is it because you share a first name?" Kagome teased with a grin.

Danny's eyes widened. " _Uh_... No! That's not why... I just really like having a hero around," Danny said. His last sentence sounded so much like a question that the uncertainty was palpable. He would have to do better. The last thing he needed was to reveal his secret to someone he just met. Kagome may seem nice now, but she'd no doubt see him as a freak after learning the truth.

Kagome could tell that Danny was uncomfortable with the topic of Danny Phantom. What was that about? There must be some history there that she wasn't around for. She had only been teasing him, but she decided to change the topic for his sake. "It's almost lunch. Do you want to get something to eat?" Kagome suggested.

"Sure," Danny replied, grateful for the change in conversation. "We can go to the Nasty Burger. That's a pretty popular place."

"The _Nasty_ Burger? Why does that _not_ sound appetizing?" Kagome questioned with a cringe.

Danny laughed before responding, "I promise it's not as bad as it sounds. I wouldn't take you to someplace _totally_ gross. Maybe a little gross? But, not totally."

"You're _hilarious_ , Danny," Kagome drawled with a smirk and roll of her eyes.

~:~

The Nasty Burger was obviously a fast food restaurant. Kagome followed Danny into the eating establishment and looked around her in mild curiosity. It seemed like any other fast food joint. Red booths along the sides with a long, white counter at the front. Like every other place they had seen today, it was empty aside from a dark-skinned girl standing behind the counter. She looked bored out of her mind. But when her green eyes landed on them, she stood up straight and brightened. "Hey, Danny," she greeted.

"Hey, Val. You're still in town?" Danny asked and stopped in front of the counter. Kagome watched the two exchange bright smiles with slight suspicion. Did Danny like this girl? Judging by her smile, it was likely that the feelings were mutual. Kagome tried to stifle her grin. That was so _sweet_. They weren't acting like a couple though...

"Yeah. My dad can't just up and leave his job anytime soon. Besides, I have to work too," Valerie said with a sigh and roll of her eyes. Truthfully, her dad had offered for her to spend the summer with her grandmother, but Valerie had turned down the offer. Just because a good portion of the town decided to leave doesn't mean that the ghosts wouldn't still attack. Valerie had responsibilities.

Valerie's eyes landed on the girl standing next to Danny. Quickly, Valerie sized up the girl. She was petite- around 5'3"- and really pretty. Valerie narrowed her eyes. She'd never seen this girl before. Who was she and how did she know Danny? It was bad enough competing with Sam for Danny, but now there was _another_ girl in the equation?

Sensing the disconnect between the girls, Danny quickly stepped in. "Val, this is Kagome. She just moved in across the street from me. I'm kinda showing her around," Danny finished with a bashful expression.

"Well that's nice of you, Danny. Then again, I wouldn't expect anything different from you," Valerie said to him with lidded eyes. "Hello, Kagome. I'm Valerie."

"Hi. It's nice to meet a friend of Danny's. I haven't met too many of them," Kagome hinted with a teasing smirk.

"You haven't introduced her to Sam and Tucker?" Valerie questioned with a raised brow.

"No. Sam and Tuck are out of town for the summer, too," Danny said with a frown.

Valerie frowned sympathetically at the boy. Despite the small part of her that was happy to hear that Sam wouldn't be around Danny all summer, Valerie did feel bad for Danny. He didn't have too many friends and they had deserted him for the entire summer. Maybe now was her chance?

"Well, we can hang out if you want," Kagome suggested. _'Take the plunge, Kagome. You won't make many worthwhile friends by idly standing back and waiting for them to come to you_.'

Valerie's eyes widened slightly. She watched Kagome stare up at Danny with a small, encouraging smile while he stared down at her with a surprised expression. "Are you sure?" he asked hesitantly. Valerie felt her stomach twist at Danny's adorably unsure tone. He could be so sweet and cute...

"Of course! As long as you promise not to cheat when we play Street Brawlers," Kagome said with a grin before turning to look up at the menu board.

"Don't you even go there!" Danny objected in a loud voice and a wide grin on his face.

Valerie really did love Danny's smile. He smiled with his entire face. His lips would pull back to show his white teeth, his cheeks would become more pronounced and you could really see the cute blush he had, and then his eyes would light up like you wouldn't believe. They were already such a bright blue, but they got even brighter when he laughed. Valerie always cherished the moments he had laughed around her. Despite this technically being one of those moments, she didn't take any joy in the fact that it was another girl making him laugh. "What did you guys want to eat?" Valerie cut in with a bit more edge to her voice than she wanted.

"I'll have my regular, Val."

"I'll have the Caesar salad," Kagome said and pointed at the picture of the salad on the menu.

"You're a vegetarian like Sam, huh? Coming right up," Valerie said before disappearing through some white doors at the back of the restaurant.

"Are you a vegetarian?" Danny asked. He was genuinely curious. He had come to the realization that Kagome was hardly anything like he expected her to be. He had judged a book by its cover and he had been supremely wrong. What else had he gotten wrong about her?

"Not at all. I just can't handle fatty foods. It triggers my acid reflux," Kagome explained with a small frown. Seeing Danny's worried expression, she placed a comforting hand onto his shoulder. "It's okay. It's not that big of a deal. Personally, I like that it helps me watch what I eat," she went on with a wink.

"Well, is there anything else you can't eat? ...Just so I know for future reference."

"Hmmm... Just strawberries. I'm highly allergic to them. Other than that, I'm okay with anything," Kagome replied.

He had taken her to an arcade when she didn't even like playing video games. Now, he was dragging her to a fast food restaurant when she couldn't even eat most of the food served here. Danny did feel a bit guilty. He was dragging her around town and doing the things the he liked to do. He would have to try someplace that she might like. That library was sounding better and better...

"Relax, Danny. It's not that big of a deal. So far, I've learned that I may actually have an aptitude for video games and that they're a lot more fun than I originally thought. And it's not like there isn't anything here that I can eat. Don't freak out. Okay?"

"Yeah, sure. I just feel kind of bad for only showing you places you'll probably never go to," Danny explained.

"I usually spend my time at places my friends want to go to. It doesn't bother me. I just like spending time with them. It doesn't really matter where that is. But, I actually do like video games now. You should be more worried about me getting better at them than you," Kagome responded with a grin. Danny returned the grin with a small smile of his own.

Valerie tried to return with their food as quickly as she could. The last thing she wanted was to leave Danny alone with that girl. Danny didn't have the best track record when it came to choosing girls to date (except her of course). The guy had dated Paulina for Pete's sake! Valerie stepped back out to the counter with their trays of food. She was met with the sight of Kagome and Danny staring at each other again. But this time, Kagome's perfectly manicured hand was resting on Danny's shoulder. Valerie narrowed her gaze while clearing her throat. "Here's your food. That'll be thirteen dollars."

Danny nearly jumped at Valerie's sudden interruption. Kagome seemed to be surprised as well and she quickly pulled her hand away as a result. As soon as she did, however, Danny felt a small jolt of electricity shoot down his arm and back up. He gripped his arm with a frown. _'What was_ that?' he asked himself. He blinked curiously down at Kagome. Had she felt that? She _had_ to. It wasn't an unpleasant shock, but it left his arm tingling. Maybe he had imagined it? Clenching and unclenching his fist a few times, Danny frowned down at his hand in confusion.

~:~

Later that day, Danny found himself in front of his computer typing up an email to Sam and Tucker. Sam was touring the Mediterranean coast at the moment at wouldn't be able to answer her phone. Danny just felt the need to include Tucker in the conversation so that the three of them could keep in contact. Obviously, he would still call Tuck later nonetheless.

 _Hey guys,_

 _How's the cruise going so far, Sam?... Never mind that. Dumb question. Just try not to jump overboard just yet._

 _How's the family stuff, Tuck? I know you're probably in heaven around your grandmother's cooking._

 _Things here are alright. Jazz is being as overbearing as ever and dad keeps going on about his new invention that should be able to harness ecto-energy or whatever. Honestly, I blanked out after the first few seconds of him trying to explain it._

 _Anyways, don't worry about me. Things have been pretty slow with the ghost activity. I haven't even heard from Skulker. Pretty nice, right? It sucks that the first summer we get ghost-free is the one you guys are out of town._

 _I promise that I'm not spending all my time playing video games and goofing off (_ _ **Sam**_ _). I walked around town today with Kagome. Oh! I almost forgot to mention. This family moved in across the street from me. The mom's an ecto-biologist and she moved here with her daughter (that's Kagome) and son. Like I said, I'm at least trying to get some fresh air._

 _I'll talk to you guys later._

 _Danny_

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to leave a pretty comment and vote!


	5. A Little Splash of Home

Moi-Moi: Hey all. Before you read, I just had a question. How do you all feel about it when Danny Phantom characters curse in fanfiction? Personally, it doesn't bother me. It actually makes the characters more believable since they are teenagers. But, I know some people don't like it because the characters never cursed in the show. I like to keep in mind that the show aired on a kid's network. _Obviously_ , the worst insults you would hear are "fruit loop" and "fink".

~:~

Danny wasn't surprised to see two, new emails in his inbox the next morning. Tucker hadn't answered when Danny had called last night, but he had made sure to send an email. Danny decided to open Tucker's email first.

 _Hey dude,_

 _YOU HAVE NO IDEA! Nothing beats my grandmama's cooking. I might be in a food coma before the summer ends. Lol._

 _I'm happy you're getting some time off from all the ghost fighting, man. You need it. Just try not to get too out of shape. The last thing you need is to give Sam a reason to go boot camp sergeant on you when she gets back. Lol!_

Danny actually tossed his head back and laughed at that. Knowing Sam, she would even get a whistle and a bullhorn if she felt that it was necessary. Danny made a mental note to spend some time training in the Ghost Zone later. He went back to reading.

 _Speaking of Sam, she's probably going to say this, but you should be careful around the mom. You know the drill. But about the daughter, is she Japanese or something? Is she cute? What's she like? If anyone knows anything about Japanese culture, it's me! Don't leave me hanging here dude!_

 _Tucker_

Danny rolled his eyes before pressing the reply button.

 _Tuck,_

 _Just make sure that you're in top, ghost fighting condition once you're back. Don't worry about me. I'm at the top of my game. (There'll be no need for "boot camp" Sam to show up). Lol_

 _I know. I'm being careful. The mom isn't a ghost hunter. She just wants to observe ghosts or something. It doesn't really matter. It's not her full time job so I'm not too worried._

 _Kagome is_

Danny stopped and stared at the blinking cursor. What could he say about Kagome?

 _Kagome is really nice. She's kind pretty too. She's got this really shiny, dark hair_

Danny's quickly attacked the backspace button and deleted the entire line. With pursed lips, he tried again.

 _Kagome's pretty cool. She cheats at Street Brawlers though. And yeah, she's Japanese. She looks..._

With a groan, Danny deleted his last sentence. After staring at the cursor for a minute, he quickly shook his head. He had other things to do today! He couldn't spend hours trying to decide how to describe Kagome to Tucker.

 _I'll send you a picture._

 _Danny_

Once he was satisfied, Danny sent the email and then proceeded to open Sam's. He was sure that Sam's email would be filled with worries and tales about her parents' lameness.

 _Hi Danny,_

 _It's good to hear that you're okay. At least you're doing fine._

 _No promises about not jumping overboard. I thought my parents were embarrassing in the U.S. That was nothing compared to them in a foreign country. My dad basically butchers any foreign language he tries to speak in and my mom's been shopping like crazy for things that she thinks I'll like. *insert an eye roll so intense that my eyes fall out*_

Danny chuckled lightly at this. He could easily picture Sam's embarrassment as her parents tried to navigate a foreign country.

 _Danny, just because there aren't any ghosts attacking right now, doesn't mean you shouldn't still be careful. I haven't met that new neighbor of yours, but now you've got another person in town after ghosts. Who knows? She might even be half way competent! Just be careful._

 _I am happy that you're making friends. But be careful. You don't really know this girl. For all you know, ghost hunting could run in the family._

 _Stay safe and write soon,_

 _Sam_

Danny smirked. Tucker had been right. Then again, Danny wasn't surprised in the slightest.

 _Hey Sam,_

 _Relax. I'm on it. I promise. The mom is so busy lately with her actual job that she hasn't been doing much ghost work. And I know for a fact that Kagome isn't into ghost hunting._

 _Just hang in there with your parents. It's only three months... Never mind. That's not helping is it? Sorry. Lol._

 _Send lots of pictures,_

 _Danny_

Once his affairs were in order, Danny shut off his computer before heading out of his room. If he left now, he would have enough time to show Kagome the library and maybe the mall. She would probably like going there better. But when Danny pulled his door open, he was surprised to see Jazz standing in front of his door with a fist raised as if she had been about to knock. "Jazz? What's up?"

"I was just coming to see if you were busy," Jazz started with a small smile.

"Actually, I was going over to Kagome's. I was gonna show her where the library is. I think she might like it. Why? Did you need something?" Danny questioned.

Jazz knew her brother better than he thought that she did. She knew that Danny was extremely selfless and would easily put a friend, family member, and even strangers before himself. She couldn't tell him that she wanted to spend the day together. She'd been sure that Danny would have gone back to lounging around his room after his day with Kagome yesterday. But if he was going to spend time with her on his own... "Oh, nothing. I was just going to ask if you've seen my keys," Jazz lied.

"Don't you keep them hanging by the door in your room?" Danny asked with a raised brow. Jazz always kept all her things in order. Danny found it hard to believe that she'd lost something.

"You're probably right. I'll go check again. Thanks, Danny!" Jazz said with a smile before walking back to her room.

Danny shot Jazz a strange look behind her back. He couldn't sense anything ghostly about Jazz just now so he knew she wasn't overshadowed. Maybe she was just being weird for _whatever_ reason? Danny shut his bedroom door behind him as he descended the steps for to the first floor and quickly left the house. He'd try to figure out what was wrong with Jazz some other time. It wouldn't be the first time Jazz acted weird. Of course, the last time she did, she was hiding the fact that she knew his secret. As far as he knew, there wasn't much about him that Jazz didn't already know. With a shrug, Danny pushed the thoughts out of his head.

Before he knew it, Danny was at the Takahashi's front door and ready to knock on the door. He didn't have to, however. He was surprised by the door being pulled open by Kimiko. " _Oh_! Danny! How are you? I can't really talk today. I've got a _huge_ inventory to sort through. Kagome's upstairs in her room. It's the last door on the right. Make sure you take your shoes off at the door. If you kids get hungry, there's food in the fridge," Kimiko rushed out while balancing a briefcase, folder, and a container of rice balls in her hands. Danny barely got a word in before she was walking around the house to where her car was surely parked out back.

Danny entered the house slowly before shutting the door behind him. He slipped his sneakers off before walking up the wooden stairs in the corner. The second floor was just like his own at home. He was mildly amused that Kagome's room was in the same position as his. Danny knocked on the door first.

" _Come in_!" he heard Kagome call out from inside.

Pushing open the door, Danny's eyes went straight to where Kagome was reading a can from behind a pair of square, black-framed glasses. Most of her already bare room was being covered by white sheets. What was she doing?

" _Oh_! Danny? What are you doing here?" Kagome questioned from where she was crouched on the floor in front of some paint cans.

"I thought that I would show you where the library and mall are, but you look busy..." he trailed off.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Danny. I was sure that you would have made plans to do something else today so I was going to spend the day painting my room," Kagome replied with a guilty expression.

"It's cool. We didn't really talk about what we would do today. So, why are you painting your room?"

Kagome smiled brightly before abruptly standing and pulling off her glasses. She was wearing an old, faded Sayonara Pussycat sweater and a pair of old, jean shorts. Her long hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, but a few strands of hair were still able to escape the ponytail. "My mom said I could. So, I'm painting it to resemble my room back home in Japan. I figured that it would help with the homesickness."

"That makes sense. Do you want some help?"

Kagome shot Danny a surprised look. After a few seconds, a smile slipped onto her face. "You're really nice, Danny. Has anyone ever told you that? If you want to help, you're more than welcome to. But I'd recommend changing first. You don't want to get paint on anything," Kagome said and pointed to Danny's clothes.

Looking down at himself, Danny nodded and said, "You're probably right. I'll be right back."

Kagome watched Danny slip out of her room before going back over to her paint cans. Her wooden floors (that were currently being covered by a white tarp) had already been covered in white carpets before they had moved in. She was just going to be covering up the grey and blue walls with white paint. She had always felt slightly self-conscious about her white and pink themed room. It had always seemed immature, but she couldn't part with it. It was as much a part of her as her-

"I'm back," Danny's voice called out.

Turning quickly, Kagome spotted Danny stepping into her room while wearing an old tee and jeans. They looked similar to the other clothes that he wore, except these had several holes in them. What had Danny been doing to his clothes to get so many holes in them? Was that a _burn mark_? "That was fast. Did you literally run home or something?"

Danny grinned and shrugged. Flying did count as "something", but he wasn't about to say that. He was actually looking forward to spending the day painting Kagome's room. He really couldn't explain it. It was such a simple, mundane task. But, he had a good feeling that today wouldn't be boring in the slightest.

Danny was about to ask what he could do first, but he was interrupted by the sound of Kagome's door squeaking as it swung open. Turning behind him, Danny was surprised to see who had walked in. A two-foot tall, golden brown dog with a white underbelly and dark brown eyes poked its head into the room before quickly approaching Danny and sniffing at his leg and feet. At the sound of Kagome's giggle, Danny raised a brow at her.

"That's Aki. He's just curious," Kagome explained.

"He's pretty cute. Hey there, little guy. It's nice to meet you," Danny said and offered his hand for Aki to sniff. The dog took a few whiffs before tentatively licking Danny's fingers. Aki took a few more sniffs before sneezing loudly and quickly trotting out of the room. "I guess I scared him off..."

"I'm sure it's nothing personal. You'd only have to worry if he started growling at you. He's pretty good at judging people. Since you've received Aki's approval, I feel a lot better about being friends with you," Kagome said and started pushing her windows open.

"You never know. I may be secretly a professional bank robber or something," Danny joked while moving to open the paint cans.

"Oh _yeah_. I _definitely_ believe you," Kagome said while grinning. "Do you want to listen to some music while we paint?"

"Sure. What have you got?" Danny questioned as he filled some trays with the paint.

"I can pull up something on Dotify."

"Cool. Let's listen to Dumpty Humpty," Danny suggested.

"Dumpty Humpty?" Kagome questioned.

Danny nearly smacked himself. "Yeah. They're an American band. We can listen to something else if you want," Danny suggested.

"That's okay," Kagome said and searched up the band on her phone. Scrolling through the results, she quickly selected the band's top song and placed her phone in the black dock. She listened to the alternative music that came through the speakers with pursed lips. Loud drums, emphasized bass guitars, and lyrics that sounded very angsty. Peering behind her, she saw Danny nodding his head along with the music.

The music wasn't _terrible_. She'd just never bothered to listen to it before. She was a pop, R &B, and classical type of girl. She hadn't really bothered with rock and alternative music. After seeing a man with copious amounts of piercings shaking his tongue and screaming loudly in a music video, she had decided that it wasn't for her. Listening now, she had to admit that the beat was really catchy.

"Do you like it?" she heard Danny question tentatively.

Looking back at him again, Kagome could see uncertainty in his eyes. She quickly shot him a small smile. "I thought the genre was only for people who liked screaming and wearing black eyeliner, but it's kind of catchy. Nice choice, Danny," Kagome said before picking up a paint roller. Danny grinned before doing the same.


	6. Fun in the Sun

_~Eight Weeks Later, 2nd week of August~_

Kagome hummed to herself as she descended the steps that led to the first floor of her home. She continued to hum happily as she entered the kitchen. She spotted her little brother scrolling through something on his phone and patted his head twice as she passed. He looked up at her questioningly before waving good morning to her. "Ohayou, Judai. Ohayou, Mama."

"Don't you sound happy today. What's up?" Kimiko questioned as she flipped a blueberry pancake.

"Not much. It's just 96 degrees outside," Kagome responded and picked up a banana from the fruit bowl on the counter.

"And that's good _because_?..." Judai questioned with a raised brow.

" _Because_ it means that there's finally a legitimate excuse to go to the water park," Kagome explained.

"That sounds like fun. You're going with Danny?" Kimiko questioned as she finished placing a third pancake on a plate. She handed the plate of breakfast to her youngest causing his eyes to light up just before he quickly dug in with a "Thanks, mom!". Kimiko smiled to herself. The kids were getting along and adjusting fine to their new life in Amity Park. She had been worried about uprooting her family to move here, but it looked like everything would turn out fine.

"Yep. Did you want to come with us, Judai?"

"No, thanks. I'm hanging with Max and Evan at the skate park today," Judai said with his mouth full.

"Don't talk with your mouth full, Judai," Kimiko admonished in an automatic tone. Judai flinched slightly before pouting.

Kagome rolled her eyes with a grin. Despite not spending as much time with her brother as she would have liked, Kagome was grateful that Judai was at least getting out of the house and making friends. She had been severely concerned for him when he had just pulled away from the family to suffer alone. But, he was getting better. He actually smiled more. When he had randomly pranked her one morning by placing plastic wrap on the toilet seat, Kagome knew that her brother would be fine. "I'm gonna get going now, mama. Knowing Danny, he's probably still asleep. I'll see you later," Kagome said as she left with a large, colorful beach bag on her shoulder.

Kagome and Danny had spent the past few weeks practically attached at the hip. That may have been because there was hardly anyone in town for the two to spend time with besides each other. But Kagome was convinced that she would have preferred to hang out with Danny no matter what. Kagome just loved spending time with him. It was usually hard for her to make real friends with kids her own age, but Danny just made it so easy. She loved his carefree, funny, and sweet demeanor. He brought out the teenager in her overly mature soul. Danny was really one of a kind and Kagome was grateful for his friendship.

Knocking on the door to Fenton Works first, Kagome waited to be let in. She didn't have to wait long. The door was being pulled open by an orange spandex clad Jack seconds later.

"Morning, Kagome!" Jack boomed in a bright voice.

"Morning, Mr. Fenton. How's your morning going?" Kagome asked with a smile.

"It's going _great_!" Jack said before moving to the side to allow Kagome entrance. "I gotta thank your mom for her advice. She's a real whiz at manipulating ectoplasmic residues. She helped me perfect my Ecto-Dejecto! It's been giving me trouble for years. But not anymore."

"I'm glad to hear it."

"Danny's upstairs in his room probably still sleeping. What are you kids doing today?"

"We're going to Roaring Waters. Danny promised that we'd go the next time the temperature got above 90," Kagome grinned.

"Sounds fun! Soak up some sun for me, too," Jack said before heading back down to the lab.

Kagome rolled her eyes with a grin before climbing up the stairs. She passed by Jazz's room on her way to Danny's and quickly sent the redhead a wave through her open door. Jazz returned the wave with a bright smile, but didn't speak. She looked to be in the middle of an important call. Moving on, Kagome stopped in front of Danny's door. Pushing the door open carefully, Kagome stuck her head into the room. Just like she expected, Danny was fast asleep.

Tiptoeing into the room, Kagome approached his bed. Danny was snoring softly from under his sheets, his left arm hanging off his bed and his right cheek smushed into his pillow. He rested on his stomach with his left foot poking out from under the covers. Kagome stifled her giggles.

Crouching down next his head, Kagome sighed softly as she rested her arms and head on his mattress. She noticed Danny gave a slight twitch. "This _can't_ be normal. You know, I don't think it's healthy for someone to sleep _this_ much. Most people are normally up before ten," Kagome said.

After some time, Danny's sleep-ridden voice said, "What teenager is up before ten on summer vacation anyways? _That_ can't be normal."

Kagome giggled lightly before smiling at Danny. He peeked one eye open to stare at her before smiling. Kagome quickly stood and waited for him to gain his bearings. "Can't we just sleep today?"

"You wanted to do that yesterday," Kagome huffed.

"Yeah. And we went bowling instead. I say we sleep until twelve and then we can spend the day playing video games," Danny suggested.

"Nice try, Danny. But it's boiling hot outside-"

"Even more reason to stay _indoors_ ," Danny interjected.

"-which means that we'll be spending the day cooling off at the water park. We've got a whole day of frolicking in the sun to get to. So hurry up and get dressed, Danny. Don't make me come back up here and find you asleep," Kagome warned playfully.

"Yes, _mom_ ," Danny teased with a smirk.

"Oh please. I can't be your mom since you never listen to me. See you downstairs. If you take too long, I'll ask your mom to tell me some stories from your childhood," Kagome said with a wink before leaving Danny's room.

Danny chuckled a bit before pulling himself up into a sitting position and touching his feet down onto the floor. Glancing over at his alarm clock, Danny noted the time. _'10:23. Better get ready_.' With a wide stretch, Danny walked over to his drawer to grab a vest and pair of trunks.

As he dressed himself for the day, Danny's eyes fell on the strip of pictures that rested on top. It was four pictures from a photo booth at the mall. He remembered the day that he had taken the photos perfectly. He hadn't been that interested in taking the photos, but Kagome had been positively excited. He had let her drag him into the booth before inserting her money into the machine.

Lifting the photo strip, Danny let a small smile grace his face as he observed the photos. The first one had Kagome smiling brightly at the camera while he watched her in amusement. He was actually smiling with her in the second one, but he also had a pair of bunny ears courtesy of Kagome. The third photo had Kagome stretched out in front of him with a smug look on her face as she blocked him from getting in the picture. He could still see himself laughing behind her. The last picture had Kagome pulling him in for a tight hug around the neck and she smiled brightly at the camera. He had actually been caught off-guard when she had done that. You could see the surprise in his face as his wide eyes stared up at her from where she had her cheek resting atop his head.

" _Danny! Your mom is about to tell me about your bed wetting problem_!" Danny heard Kagome shout from downstairs.

"Yeah right! I never wet the bed!" he shouted back as he put down the pictures. He quickly grabbed some flip flops, a towel, and change of clothes.

" _That's not what she said_!" Kagome's voice shouted in a singsong tone. Danny laughed as he left his room and shut the door behind him.

~:~

Roaring Waters was the only water park in Amity Park. There were dozens of attractions for people of all ages. In the center of the park were a cluster of swimming pools that were also designed to accommodate patrons of all ages. Upon entering the park, guests could rent a locker to hold their possessions for the duration of their visit.

Danny and Kagome had decided to share a locker to save money. Since he had come dressed for the park, Danny waited outside the changing rooms for Kagome to finish. He shielded his eyes from the sun as he waited, his hand flapping his vest against his chest in an effort to cool himself down.

"Sorry to take so long. Let's go!"

Looking up from the ground, Danny spotted Kagome exiting the changing room. His jaw nearly dropped. A pink bikini with red and white polka dots. Danny had never cared much for the color pink until now. Swallowing thickly, Danny slapped a smile on his face as Kagome approached him. "Where do you want to go first?"

"That tall slide over there. I've always wanted to slide down one," Kagome said. With an eager smile, she slipped her hand into Danny's and led the boy away. It took a few seconds to get

his legs to work right, but they eventually figured it out. "This is going to be so much fun. I just love being out in the sunshine."

Danny chuckled a bit at Kagome's enthusiasm. "You've wanted to come here for a while now. I thought you would have wanted to come on your birthday instead," Danny said.

"Danny? You remembered my birthday? How sweet," Kagome grinned at him.

"How could I not? You've mentioned it almost every day this month," Danny replied dryly with a smirk.

Kagome pursed her lips at that. "Really? I don't remember that," Kagome muttered. Danny playfully rolled his eyes. It wouldn't be the first time Kagome _conveniently_ forgot something she said that could be used against her. "Nonetheless, I couldn't wait for the 20th. I've been looking forward to this!"

"You never went to the water park back in Japan?"

"Well... We used to go when I was little. But then I grew up and never bothered to go. It just lost its appeal," Kagome explained. "But now I'm happy to go again because you're going with me. You make everything fun, Danny."

"So do you," Danny replied. Thankfully, the heat had already given him a flushed appearance. What was a little more blood to the region after a compliment like that?

~:~

A few hours later, the pair was soaking wet and grinning like mad. They had gone on almost every single ride at least twice. As they stood outside the changing rooms/lockers, Danny hung his towel from around his shoulders and waited for Kagome to finish squeezing the water out of her hair. "I think at least a gallon of water got up my nose today," Kagome said, but was grinning widely.

"If you got a gallon, I've got two," Danny joked and wiped away some water that ran run down his head.

Kagome rolled her eyes at him before saying, "Let's get some lunch. I see a food stand over there. Can you hold a place in line while I get my wallet?"

"Sure. Grab my wallet, too," Danny said before lightly jogging over to the concession stand. From his place at the back of the line, he could see the menu advertising their stand's burgers, hotdogs, pizza, and (thankfully) salads.

This was turning out to be the best summer ever. Not a single ghost attack all summer and Danny was able to spend the summer being a _normal_ teenager. In the back of his mind, he wondered why none of his enemies had made an appearance, but those thoughts were easily pushed away. He was finally allowed to kick back, relax, and have fun. _Lots_ of fun. Why question it and rock the boat?

Danny smiled softly as he thought of all the things he had done with Kagome. Bowling, seeing a million movies, playing through every game in his collection, and even visiting a karaoke bar. It hadn't been someplace that Danny normally visited, but it was definitely fun. Singing wasn't his thing, but it sure was Kagome's. And boy was she good at it. A dopey smile spread onto his face as Danny remembered seeing her singing one of Ember's old songs 10x better than Ember ever could.

" _Check it out! It's Fen-turd_!"

Danny groaned softly. Another good thing about the summer? Dash had been _gone_. The town had been almost devoid of teens, meaning most of the crowd of his daily tormentors had disappeared. It looked like his vacation was starting to come to an end, however.

Danny felt Dash's thick hand slam into his back with more force than a speeding football. Danny faltered a bit, but quickly shot Dash an annoyed look. The blonde boy barely towered over Danny anymore, but he still liked to look down on Danny superiorly. Kwan stood behind him, his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. The pair were wearing pairs of matching speedos that made Danny slightly uncomfortable. "What you doing here all alone, Fen-tina? Your loser friends still not back to hold your hands?" Dash teased while feigning sympathy.

"Knock it off, Dash," Danny growled. Danny never cared what Dash thought of him anymore, but he wasn't about to let the jock bad mouth his friends.

"What you gonna do about it, Fenton?"

Danny sighed. "Dash, don't you think this is getting a bit old? We're not fourteen anymore. Don't you think it's time to grow up?" Danny questioned and stepped forward in the line. He was almost at the front now. What was taking Kagome?

"That... That's not... _Listen_ , Fenton. Wailing on you will _never_ get old. So just get used to it!" Dash sputtered. He glared harshly down at Danny, but the boy wasn't paying Dash any mind. Dash narrowed his gaze at Danny. The little freak was ignoring him!

"Hi. Can I get a cheeseburger combo and a salad? Can I also get a cola and a bottle of water?" Danny ordered for himself and Kagome. Hearing a low growl, Danny could tell that Dash was about to shout some more harsh words at him. Danny rolled his eyes. He was so over this. He was entirely surprised to feel Dash's thick shoulder collide with his own as Dash shoved him out of the line and onto the rough floors. Danny nearly cursed as he felt the rough park floors dig into his skin. His ire stoked, Danny shot a dark glare at Dash, but the blonde was smirking down at him superiorly. _'That's it_ ,' Danny thought.

He had been about to summon up a clone to teach Dash a lesson, but stopped when he heard someone call out his name. "Oh my god! _Danny_!" His anger drained out of his body at once just before he felt a pair of small hands on him. From where he laid on the floor, he could see Kagome crouched at his side and running her eyes and hands all over him. If he weren't so stunned, he might have blushed. "Are you okay? I saw everything," she said with a frown.

Great. Now Kagome had a clue for what life was _really_ like for him. He felt more embarrassed than ever. Why did Dash have to be such a-

"What is your _problem_?" Kagome asked in a heated tone as she shot a fierce glare at Dash. Danny blinked at her owlishly.

"W-what?" Dash stuttered at the girl. Who was she? And how did _she_ know _Fenton_? Dash grinned. "Hey there. You must be new around here. I'm Dash, the star quarterback at Casper High," Dash said. Dash had perfected his game years ago. Even as a lowly freshman, he had been able to get senior girls to follow him around like puppies. What could he say? He was just a people person.

Kagome stood up before pulling Danny onto his feet. She turned back to Dash and said, "Are you out of your mind or do you always go around harassing people for no reason?"

Dash frowned. What? That's not what she's supposed to say. She should be giggling and giving him that _look_. "Why don't you tell me your name?" Dash suggested.

"Give me a break. I don't know what your problem is, but you need to back off," Kagome warned. She had been so happy just minutes ago. But then she had seen this blonde boy glaring and shouting down at Danny. She hadn't been sure what they were talking about, but then the blonde had just pushed Danny to the ground without any provocation! Kagome was sure that Danny hadn't done anything wrong. Not only wasn't he the type to pick fights, but she had seen Danny ignoring the boy- the _bully_.

"Listen-" Dash started again.

"No, _you_ listen. You just pushed over my friend for no reason other than to be a jerk. I don't know what your deal is, but you need to leave," Kagome said. She quickly turned back to the vendor behind counter. It was a teenage boy wearing a colorful outfit. With wide eyes, the boy handed the food over to Danny and announced the price for it all. Kagome quickly gave the boy a few bills before turning back to Dash. "If you ask me, there's nothing worse than a bully- someone so insecure that they have to make others feel bad just to make themselves feel better. You think that bringing others down makes you look better, but your just being petty and pathetic. _Grow up_. Come on, Danny," Kagome said before looping her arm through Danny's and leading him away.

Dash watched them go with a slack jaw and wide, stunned eyes. "Huh? What just happened?" Dash questioned. That was _not_ how that was supposed to go down.

While Kagome fumed, Danny was giving her stunned looks. "Wow, Kagome. That was pretty cool. Thanks," Danny smiled.

"Of course, Danny. You're my friend. I wasn't about to let that jerk get away with it. He's lucky I didn't do worse," Kagome huffed. She wasn't a tenth degree black belt for nothing... "I just hate bullies. I've had my fair share of them and can't _stand_ them."

" _You_ were bullied?" Danny questioned.

Kagome scoffed. "Yeah. It was in middle school. Just a bunch of stupid girls who think it's funny to tease someone because they were probably the shortest middle schooler in the world. I won't lie. I was _tiny_. But that's still no excuse. It didn't help that I played violin, had braces, and had to wear ridiculous, coke bottle glasses," Kagome said and took a seat on an empty lounge chair. It was a long time ago, but Kagome never liked to talk about it. Her family had to fight tooth and nail to get her to talk about it while it was going on! What was it about Danny that made him so easy to talk to?

Danny sat on the one next to it and faced her. Danny frowned deeply. He could imagine a younger Kagome being treated like he had been for his entire high school career. He reached out and rested a comforting hand onto her shoulder.

Kagome looked up at Danny to see him giving her a small smile. "It's okay. My mom taught me martial arts so that I could defend myself whenever Shizuka and her minions would chase me after school. I only had to kick their butts once and they learned not to mess with me."

"I can hardly imagine you kicking a bunch of girls' butts," Danny said with a laugh.

"You better believe it, Fenton. If you're smart, you'll stay on my good side," Kagome said with a wink before taking a sip from her water bottle.


	7. One is the Loneliest Number

"Have you got everything? Oh, who am I kidding? This is _you_ we're talking about," Maddie said as she wiped away some tears. Jack was blubbering loudly as he blew his nose into a hanky. Jazz watched her parents with an amused expression before shooting her little brother a knowing look. Danny was standing next to their mom with his hands shoved into his pockets and a small smile on his face.

There were several other people unloading suitcases and giving teary goodbyes at the airport's unloading zone. The intercom was buzzing lively with announcements of flight times and plane departures. Jazz stood with two large suitcases and a duffle bag as she faced her parents and brother. She was officially leaving. A part of her didn't want to leave Danny on his own, but he had reassured her that everything would be fine. He still had Tucker and Sam to look out for him.

"I can't believe our little Jazzy-Pants is all grown up. It happened so _fast_ ," Jack insisted as he hiccupped.

"I know, dear," Maddie said as she patted her husband on the back.

"Guys, I'm not a baby anymore. I'm _eighteen_ now. I'll be fine," Jazz stressed.

"Jazz is right," Danny said and stepped towards his sister. Danny stared at Jazz for several seconds before pulling her into a tight hug. "Thanks for everything, Jazz."

"Don't say that like I'm leaving forever. I'll still be checking up on you from time to time," Jazz said.

"You wouldn't be you if you didn't poke your nose into my business," Danny joked.

Once the siblings pulled away from each other, Maddie stepped forward to embrace her only daughter. "Are you sure that you don't want us to come with you? We can help you get settled in," Maddie suggested.

"That's okay, mom. You need to be here to protect Amity Park. You never know when those ghosts will come back. It's good to be on your toes," Jazz said in a pointed tone. Danny nearly rolled his eyes at Jazz's obvious attempt at getting one, final lecture in.

"I'll miss you so much, Jazz," Jack said with a loud sniff before pulling his daughter off the floor and into a bone-crushing hug.

"I'll miss you, too," Jazz wheezed out. Once her father had released her, Jazz took a deep breath. "I better get going. I'll call you as soon as I land in California."

"Alright, sweetie. We love you," Maddie said as her hand reached out towards Jazz. After several seconds, Maddie withdrew her hand. It was time to let go.

"I love you guys, too. See you for Christmas break!" Jazz said before grabbing both of her suitcase handles and heading into the airport. Danny watched his sister go with a fond smile. He would really miss Jazz. She was annoying and pesky, but she was still his loving, big sister.

"Let's go home. Why don't you let me drive, Jack?" Maddie suggested and opened her hand. Jack nodded as he dropped the keys in her waiting hand. With loud sniffs, Jack climbed into the passenger side of the Family Assault Vehicle. Maddie turned to her youngest with a small smile. "It's so hard to believe that you kids are growing up. This will be you in two years, sweetie."

"I know," Danny said before walking with his mom back to the RV. Unlike most teens, Danny wasn't looking forward to college. Not only was he unsure if he would be able to get in with his grades, but Danny was unsure about leaving Amity Park unprotected. Maybe he could ask Clockwork or someone to keep an eye on things for him? It was a problem for another time.

~:~

"How you holding up?" Kagome questioned as she stared at Danny from where he laid at the foot of her bed. She was sitting further up the bed with her back against her headboard. Danny had immediately come over after getting back from dropping Jazz off at the airport. Kagome had been quick to let him in, but Danny hadn't said much.

"I'm fine. Really," Danny insisted. "It's not like I didn't see it coming."

"I only ask because I know how sucky it can feel to realize that you're alone," Kagome explained. Danny shot her a confused look. "You've had Jazz around your entire life. Things are going to feel a little lonely now that she's out of the house. I felt the same way when my brothers moved out. And even though he denies it, I'm sure that Judai will miss me when I leave."

Danny chuckled a bit before going back to his staring match with the ceiling. "School's starting on Monday."

"I know. Your friends are coming back tomorrow. Right?"

"Yeah. It's been so long since I've seen Sam and Tucker. I really want you to meet them. I'm sure you guys will get along," Danny said.

"I'm sure we will," Kagome replied. "You made them sound like really good friends."

"They are. They're getting back pretty late tomorrow so you'll see for yourself on Monday."

"I am _not_ looking forward to school. I can't believe that summer is done. It was so much fun," Kagome groaned.

"No kidding. The last thing I'm looking forward to is barely scraping by Lancer's class," Danny joked.

Kagome frowned slightly. "What class does he teach? Is it your worst subject or something?"

"More like they all are," Danny scoffed.

"Well..." Kagome started. "If you're having trouble, I can help you." Danny sat up onto his elbows before raising a brow at Kagome. She shrugged once at him with a small smile.

"How else are you going to become an astronaut? You need killer grades for that."

"Thanks, Kagome. That would be awesome. I'll...try not to let you down," Danny replied with a bright smile.

"I doubt that you could," Kagome answered honestly.

~:~

Sam tugged impatiently on the straps to her backpack while her eyes glanced up the street. She could hear Tucker's PDA beeping repeatedly as he tapped away at the screen.

"Where's Danny? We're gonna be late if we don't get going," Sam worried.

"Since when do you care about getting to school on time?" Tucker questioned Sam innocently. When Sam didn't reply, Tucker went on, "Or is this about you missing Danny?"

"Of course I missed him. Didn't you? We haven't seen him all summer," Sam explained while giving Tucker strange looks.

Tucker sent Sam a knowing look. He couldn't understand why Sam wouldn't just admit it to herself. How was she going to be able to admit her feelings to Danny when she was so set on denying them for so long? In his honest opinion, Danny and Sam might just spend the rest of their lives dancing around the idea of them being a couple. It was so _obvious_ that Sam liked Danny and although he'd never said so, Danny did feel something for Sam.

"There he is!" Sam exclaimed with a gasp. "Danny! Over-" Sam started, but stopped. Danny was approaching them, but he wasn't alone. He was talking to a girl- Kagome, Sam assumed. She was laughing at something that Danny was saying and Danny had yet to acknowledge Sam (or Tucker). The excited happiness that she had been feeling quickly vanished and was replaced with intense suspicion.

"Hey guys!" Danny greeted.

"Hey dude! It's been _way_ too long," Tucker said and shared a fist bump with his best friend.

"Yeah... It's good to see you, Danny," Sam said before pulling Danny in for a hug. Sam made sure to observe Kagome's reaction, but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Good.

"How was the cruise?"

" _Dull_. Let's not speak of it ever again. I'm perfectly content with pretending that it never happened," Sam answered.

"So, you're Kagome? Danny's told us a lot about you," Tucker started and gave Kagome a wide smile.

"Same for you. I feel like I know you both extremely well," Kagome responded.

"So what part of Japan are you from?" Tucker questioned as the group started moving towards Casper High together.

Sam nearly thanked Tucker out loud for getting Kagome away from Danny. Sam walked at Danny's side instead, her violet eyes trained on Kagome's back. She couldn't explain it, but there was something up with Kagome. Sam prided herself on being an amazing judge of character. She just _knew_ when someone wasn't to be trusted. And Kagome was definitely one of those people.

"You okay, Sam?" Sam heard Danny ask her.

Blinking once to clear her vision, Sam shot Danny a smile. "Yeah. I'm fine. Everything's _peachy_."

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to review! :D


	8. T'was the Best of Times, T'was the Worst

Chapter 8: It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Worst of Times (stupid fanfiction won't let me enter in the entire title)

Not counting this last summer, this was the best week of Kagome's life. Her home life was great, she was quickly making friends, and she was finally felt accepted by her peers.

Finally, her mom's store had been successfully opened and business was booming. Kimiko specialized in designing not only clothes for the rich and famous, but clothes for the everyday person. Her store held clothes for both types and the women in Amity Park were quick to eat it up. Judai had finally returned to his joyful, music-obsessed, prankster ways. While this caused Kagome to want to strangle him daily, she would rather it be this way. After their father had walked out on them, Judai had been so reclusive. Now, he acted _almost_ as if it had never happened. Almost.

Kagome was quick to make new friends at Casper High. Two of the most popular girls in school, Paulina and Star, were quick to welcome her into the fold with a complementary A-Lister membership packet and everything! Paulina had even convinced Kagome to try out for the cheerleading squad. Some formerly senior girls had graduated and left a few spaces on the team that needed to be filled. And according to Paulina, Kagome was a perfect fit.

Not only was she making friends with the more popular kids, Kagome had been getting along great with Danny's friends. Tucker was always discussing her culture with her-being the most interested in it. The boy had been easy to get along with, especially since he and Danny were so much alike. Her relationship with Sam wasn't as fast-growing, but it was getting there. The two girls didn't have too much in common, besides Danny. There just wasn't much to talk about with Sam. Kagome also got the feeling that Sam was always watching her. It was creepy, but she was probably just being paranoid.

~:~

Not counting this last summer, this was the worst week of Sam's life. She was basically watching any hope for happiness go down the drain! If she had to hear about Kagome _one_ more time...

"Hey, Sam," Danny greeted as he approached her.

Slapping a smile onto her face, Sam turned away from her locker to face him. "Hey, Danny. What's up?" Sam questioned as she closed her locker and clutched her books to her chest.

"Not much. I was looking for Tuck. I needed to tell him that I can't make it to the arcade after school," Danny told her.

"Is there something wrong? Do you need help?" Sam interrogated with a serious expression. Was there finally some ghost activity? Sam had _known_ that the ghosts would come back. It was only a matter of-

Danny chuckled and waved his in front of him. "No. Everything's fine, Sam. I can't hang with Tuck because I'm meeting up with Kagome after school."

If she could have gone back in time, Sam would have to stop herself from saying what she did next. "You're blowing off Tucker to hang with _Kagome_?" Sam asked with slight attitude.

Danny's smile drooped slightly. "We're not hanging. Not really. She's helping me with my chemistry homework," Danny corrected.

"Oh... Danny, I know that this may sound strange, but...how well do you know Kagome?" Sam asked with in a tentative tone.

"Pretty well. We hung out all summer, Sam. Why?"

This was going to blow up in her face. Danny could be so dense and stubborn. Once she told him what she had been thinking for the past week, surely Danny would get mad. But it had to be said. "I just don't think that we should be so trusting of her. I mean, for all we know, she could secretly be hunting ghosts," Sam tried.

Just as she expected, Danny frowned deeply at her. "Sam, I'm sure that Kagome's not a ghost hunter. Just because Valerie turned out to be one, doesn't mean that _every_ girl in my life is hunting ghosts."

"Do you know that for sure?" Sam persisted.

"What's with you, Sam? It's like you want her to hunt ghosts or something," Danny said, his tone now angry and defensive.

Sam sighed as she shook her head. "That's not it, Danny. I just think that she's hiding something. Sure, I don't know what it is. But, I have a gut feeling, Danny. You have to at least hear me out. You know better than anyone that you just have to trust your instincts with these things," Sam reasoned. "How can you call someone your friend, when they could be hiding something major about themself?"

Danny frowned deeply. "I haven't exactly been completely honest with her either, Sam."

Sam balked. "You can't be serious, Danny. That's completely different! This is your secret we're talking about here," Sam stressed.

"I don't see how it's different, Sam. Look, I have to go. I'll just text Tuck to let him know. See you later, Sam," Danny said and walked away.

"Danny! _Wait_!"

Sam growled lowly before kicking the locker below her own and producing a deep dent in the door. With a heavy sigh, Sam leaned against the lockers and ran a hand through her hair. What was she to do now? Danny wouldn't listen to her unless the proof was right in front of his eyes. "That's it!" Sam said to herself before quickly rushing out of the school. She would just have to get the proof that she needed. Could she involve Tucker? Only if necessary. Tucker was slowly being brainwashed into believing that Kagome was this perfect, little... Sam growled again.

~:~

Danny couldn't believe Sam. Well, that was a lie. Sam was never one to trust others easily. She was also fiercely protective. But he didn't need protection from Kagome of all people. It was Kagome! The girl he had spent all summer with.

Sam was just being paranoid. What would make her think that Kagome was a threat? Kagome was probably the nicest person that Danny knew. She's interested in singing, playing the violin, and reading fictional novels. She wants to be a vet when she grows up. She hates carrots and thinks that the word "ointment" sounds gross. Danny knew more than enough about her to know that she wasn't secretly a ghost hunter or anything worse.

But Sam had brought up a good point. Was he being a good friend when he was hiding literally half of himself from Kagome? He'd thought about this a few times over the summer, usually after having an extremely relaxing or fun day with Kagome. He would always feel guilty for hiding his double life from her. He tried his best to ignore the guilt though. He had gone two years without telling his own parents the truth. He could go without letting Kagome know.

Walking up the front steps to the Takahashi home, Danny stopped at the front door. He was about to knock, but froze when a chilled breath escaped his mouth. With wide, frantic eyes, Danny's gaze went to the sky. The blue skies were entirely clear with not a trace of ghostly activity. Maybe a ghost had just passed by? They could be on their way into town. He had to go ghost and do a sweep of the-

" _Hello, Daniel_."

Recognizing that voice instantly, Danny turned with a glare. "Plasmius," Danny sneered up at where Vlad was floating in the middle of the street. The vampiric-looking ghost grinned down at Danny with his arms crossed over his broad chest.

"Did you miss me, my dear boy?" Vlad asked with a chuckle.


	9. Vanishing Act

Vlad was thrilled to finally be able to return to Amity Park. For the entire summer, he had been in and out of the Ghost Zone chasing after myths and legends. His search had been in vain, however. He hadn't been able to find anything worthwhile.

While spying on the Fentons back in May, Vlad had received quite a shock. Daniel had been down in the lab with his friends and Jasmine doing a bit of training while Jack and Maddie were out of the house. Vlad had been interested to see just how much Daniel had progressed while still hoping to get in a few laughs at the boy's failures. After a few minutes of watching, Vlad wasn't laughing. With wide eyes, he watched as Daniel finally perfected duplication and held the copy for several minutes. It had taken Vlad years to perfect that technique!

Vlad had always known that Daniel had potential. The boy was a quick learner and seemed to adapt to having ghost powers easily- as if he had always been destined to have them. Vlad glared at the sight of Daniel sparring with his duplicate. The boy's moves weren't as sloppy as they had been two years ago. Even the boy's mastery of his ice powers had progressed far beyond what Vlad had thought possible for Daniel at this stage.

It had worried Vlad. While Vlad was worrying himself with his political duties, Daniel had been training and getting stronger. It wouldn't be long before Daniel knew more than him and resultantly surpassed him. So Vlad had decided to take a working vacation into the Ghost Zone. For the most part, he had been absent all summer. It was quite easy to be the mayor of a town when so much of its population decided to pack up and leave. Hardly anyone was here to make sure that he did his job!

Vlad had been chasing down myth after myth, legend after legend, searching for anything that would help him stay on top. But, nothing had proven fruitful. He had essentially wasted three months. Butter biscuits!

Upon arriving back in Amity Park, Vlad had every intent to visit the Fentons. He had to see Maddie. He was sure that Jasmine would be leaving for college. Maddie would probably need support and comfort from a dear friend...if she would allow him into her home without dumping hot tea on him.

On the flight over to the Fenton home, Vlad had spotted Daniel walking alone. That was odd. Usually, the boy would be with his two lackeys- er, _friends_. Vlad invisibly watched Daniel walk home before crossing the street and approaching the house across from his. Vlad raised a brow and moved in closer. Who was Daniel going to see?

Vlad realized too late that he had alerted Daniel to his presence when the boy suddenly looked around wildly. Might as well reveal himself. "Hello, Daniel."

With a harsh glare, Daniel turned to Vlad. "Plasmius," he ground out.

Not able to resist taunting the boy, Vlad asked, "Did you miss me, my dear boy?"

"Do you _really_ want me to answer that?"

"Be careful, Daniel. You might hurt my feelings," Vlad replied with a wicked grin and gathered an ecto-blast in his palm.

With a gasp, Danny leapt over the side of the ledge surrounding the stairs to duck out of sight. There was flash of two, white rings just before Danny Phantom made an appearance. "Wow. It's like finally having an occasion to wear an old suit," Danny mused with a grin. With a quick shift of emotions from amused to angry, Danny flew towards Vlad in a rush.

Vlad was momentarily surprised at how much faster Daniel was before he quickly erected a spherical ecto-shield around himself. Daniel slammed against his shield with a grunt before glaring at him with neon green eyes. Surprisingly, Danny placed his palms flat against the shield before charging his hands with his own energy. Danny seemed to be short circuiting Vlad's shield with his own energy. Vlad's jaw dropped as his shield collapsed in front of his eyes. Not wasting any time, Daniel fired a punch directly to the middle of his face. _'He can dismantle my shields now!?_ '

"What's the matter, Plasmius? Off your A-game today?" Danny taunted before flying towards Vlad.

"Even at my worst, I'm still ten times more skilled than _you_ , Daniel," Vlad growled. He waited until Daniel was close enough before gripping him by the throat and swinging him around a few times and sending him flying into the pavement below. Daniel had grown quite a bit. Even tossing him around was proving to be difficult when the teen was almost Vlad's height.

Danny shouted loudly and he plummeted towards the concrete. He tried to regain balance, but he was failing. He had been about to go intangible instead when he heard the sound of a loud scream. A second later, Danny had slammed roughly on his back into the sidewalk. He groaned slightly before blinking his eyes open.

"Kagome!" Danny exclaimed nervously. She had been the one who had screamed... She hadn't made it home yet? Oh man. She couldn't be here! There was a fight going on! She could get hurt! She-

"How do you know my name?" Kagome questioned with a suspicious look.

"I... uh... I overheard someone call you that...when I was flying by the high school," Danny said while pulling himself up from the ground. When he faced Kagome again, she was shooting him a dubious stare. "Um... You shouldn't be here. It's not safe. You should run or hide," Danny said while turning her around and pushing her back down the street.

"Wait a minute!" she objected.

"Just _trust_ me on this one. Hide," Danny urged before quickly flying back up to face Vlad.

Kagome frowned deeply before turning back around. She _was_ going to hide, but where was Danny? He was supposed to be meeting her at her house. Was he already there and hiding? Or was he on his way? Ducking in an alley, Kagome pulled out her phone and quickly dialed Danny's number. "Pick up, Danny..." Kagome silently urged.

When she heard the telltale sound of Danny's ringtone, Kagome froze. Was he around!? Peering out from behind the building she was leaning on, Kagome searched for him. There was no one else here but Danny Phantom and that other ghost he was fighting. Where was the sound coming from?

Danny nearly cursed. Who was calling him at a time like this!? With Vlad's fists held tightly within his grasp, Danny tried to overpower the older ghost with his strength.

"You can't _beat_ me, Daniel. It will take you years before you're at my level of strength," Vlad taunted before splitting himself in two.

Danny gasped just before feeling the Vlad copy's fist strike his spine. With a pained grunt, Danny fell onto his knee. With a growl, Danny's eyes flashed an icy blue. Vlad's eyes widened as he felt a freezing cold sensation over take his hands. "All that strength's no good to you if you can't move. Huh, Plasmius?" Danny taunted before firing an ice beam out of his eyes.

Completely frozen over, Vlad fell backwards onto the asphalt. He stared up at Daniel before looking around him frantically. No. He couldn't lose to Daniel. Not here. Not now. With a growl, Vlad gathered up as much ecto-energy as he could and spread it outwards from his entire body.

Danny was about to _really_ go in on Plasmius. The older ghost must have been off his game. It had never taken this little time to beat Vlad. Was Vlad slipping or was Danny just getting better? He'd like to think that he was.

Before Danny could really show Vlad what he could do, Vlad started to glow purple. Danny quickly went intangible with a gasp to defend against the ice shards that had been sent flying. in the explosion. When the ice stopped flying and Danny opened his eyes, Vlad was nowhere to be found. "Where'd he go?" Danny called out before taking to the air. Even with a bird's eye view, he didn't see any signs of Plasmius. "Must have run off," Danny said with a chuckle before flying away from the scene.

Kagome moved out of her hiding place when she spotted Danny Phantom leave. Her eyebrows furrowed just before she used her phone to call Danny again. This time, she couldn't hear his ringtone. Had he left?

" _Kagome? Hey! Sorry I'm late. I had to let Tucker know that I was coming over to your place after school_ ," Danny said.

"Danny, where are you right now?" Kagome questioned.

" _I'm almost there. I promise_."

With a frown, Kagome said, "There's a lot of wind. I can barely hear you."

Suddenly, the wind stopped blowing so heavily into the phone and Danny stuttered, " _Uh. Sorry. I was running. Listen, I'll be right there_."

"Yeah. Sure thing, Danny," Kagome replied. Danny quickly hung up and Kagome looked down at her phone in confusion. Walking back over to her steps, Kagome got out her house keys while shaking her head. On her way up the stairs, Kagome noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Craning her neck around the step, Kagome squinted at the object. It looked like Danny's backpack. Kagome frowned before moving to pick it up. She didn't need a second opinion. This was _definitely_ Danny's bag.


	10. A New Breed

Kagome looked up at Danny through her lashes. He was writing in some answers on the worksheet he had gotten from his history class. He _seemed_ perfectly fine. They were both spread out over her bedspread with their textbooks and notebooks around them. Kagome bit the inside of her cheek before asking, "Did you see those ghosts fighting?"

Danny's pencil stilled. "Uh... No. I didn't. When was this?"

"About twenty minutes ago. Danny Phantom was fighting another ghost. I think it was the Wisconsin Ghost," Kagome said.

Danny looked up from his paper before shaking his head. "Nope. I must have missed them."

"I figured that you had since you had already stopped by my house. I thought maybe you had run off. But you couldn't have because when I called you, I could still hear your ringtone nearby," Kagome mused.

Danny was metaphorically sweating bullets. What could he say to this!? _'Way to go, Fenton. Now what!?_ ' "Are you sure it was my phone? I had my phone with me the whole time," Danny said with a confused frown. _'Sure. Just play dumb, Fenton_.'

Kagome could see the frantic guilt that Danny was trying to disguise. Whatever it was that he had been doing, he probably didn't want her to know about it. What could he have been doing that was so terrible? There was also the _other_ explanation. Maybe she _hadn't_ heard his phone. Maybe Danny had really forgotten to talk to Tucker and had run back to find him. But why not just call Tucker instead?

"Okay, Danny. You're probably right. Maybe I was hearing things," Kagome replied with an easy smile.

Danny nearly sighed in relief. Returning Kagome's smile with one of his own, Danny went back to his homework. At least Kagome had bought it. His secret was still safe.

~:~

Vlad felt his black town car slow to a stop just before his driver announced, "We've arrived, Mayor Masters."

Vlad resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the obvious declaration. "Thank you, my boy," Vlad responded with a small smile before pushing his door open and exiting the vehicle. "I won't be long. Just visiting some old friends," Vlad reminded the young man. Normally, Vlad would either fly or drive himself to wherever he needed to go, but today he felt like subtlety gloating about his wealth and power. There was nothing like riding through the middle-class neighborhoods in an expensive car with his mayor ribbons flapping in the wind on the hood of the car. Vlad grinned as he walked up the steps to the Fenton residence.

Before Vlad could even ring the doorbell, the door was suddenly pulled open by an exuberant Jack. "Vladdy!" Jack shouted before pulling Vlad into the house with one arm around his shoulders. Vlad pushed down the anger he felt from being in such close proximity to Jack. _Ick_. "You're just in time, V-man. I want you to meet someone. Vladdy, this is Kimiko. Kim, this is Vlad."

Vlad looked down at the woman sitting on the couch with a tea cup in her small hands. She placed down the cup just before standing and facing him with a bright smile on her face. She offered him her hand for a shake. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Vlad," she said.

"The pleasure is all mine," Vlad said and took her hand in his. Vlad considered himself a decent judge of character. From just this firm handshake and bright smile, he could tell that this small woman was quite self-assured and social. Additionally, something about her put him off. It was a suspicious feeling. He couldn't explain the sense of foreboding that he was now harboring.

"Kim has been a great help. She's been helping me modify my ghost hunting equipment. She's a _real_ whiz at understanding ecto-biology!" Jack said.

Kimiko was reclaiming her seat in the middle of the couch when she said, "I wouldn't go _that_ far, Jack."

" _Nonsense_! Your work is some of the most influential in the field," Jack argued.

"Jack's right. Much of what we learned came from your publications," Maddie said as she suddenly appeared in the living room with a plate of fudge squares. Jack was quick to grab a square, the chocolate distracting him from the wicked glare that Maddie had shot Vlad. Vlad responded with a small smile before sitting in the seat at Kimiko's left.

"You'll have to forgive me. I've been out of town for several weeks. What exactly is it that you specialize in?" Vlad questioned with a pleasant smile. Another ghost hunter had moved into his town? Vlad would have to find out how much of a threat she was to him. It was better to be safe than sorry. But he was sure that she wasn't much of a threat.

"Right now, I'm focusing on the psychology of ghosts. But, I've done some research on the biology of ghosts as well. I actually came to Amity Park to observe the ghosts that so frequently make appearances in the town," Kimiko explained. "But, they've all seemed to go into hiding..."

"Except for Phantom and the Wisconsin Ghost. I saw them fighting on the news last night. It was just bad luck that Jack and I were modifying the engine on the Specter Speeder and couldn't hear the fight," Maddie said with a frown. "Our ecto-energy detectors must have been malfunctioning as well since they didn't pick up on the gathering of ghostly energy," Maddie mumbled as she sat on Kimiko's right.

Before anyone could speak, the front door suddenly opened. "I'm home!" Danny called out as he stepped into the house with a wary glance around him. The boy looked on-edge to Vlad. He probably recognized the car out front. Vlad smirked to himself.

"Hi, sweetie," Maddie replied with a bright smile.

Vlad watched Daniel turn to them before setting a glare onto him. Vlad smirked back. A young woman stepped in after Daniel before looking around the room in confusion. "Hi, mom and dad. Hi, Ms. Takahashi," Daniel said.

"Hi, Danny. Are you alright? You look upset," Kimiko commented with a small frown.

Danny immediately stood up straighter with a surprised expression. He quickly offered Kimiko a small grin. "I-I'm alright. Just have a lot of homework," Danny offered.

"Hey, mom. How are you, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton?" the young woman said.

Before anyone else could respond, Vlad quickly interjected. "This is your daughter? I must say that she looks so much like you," Vlad said and approached the girl. "It is a pleasure to meet you, my dear. Vlad Masters," he said with a grin and offered her his hand. From the corner of his eye, Vlad could see Danny glaring at him. Vlad nearly laughed aloud.

"Oh. It's nice to meet you, Mr. Masters. My name is Kagome," the girl replied with a bright smile before slipping her hand into his.

Vlad had been relishing in Danny's upset, but his glee was cut short by a literal shock to his system. With a pained help, Vlad quickly pulled his hand away from the girl before clutching his hand towards his chest. His hand was tingling as if the circulation had been cut off and was suddenly being returned. He could feel the uncomfortable tingle in his entire arm. What was _that_!? Vlad suddenly realized that everyone was staring at him suspiciously. He released a sheepish chuckle, but froze. Had his tongue just felt _fangs_ in his mouth?

"Vladdy! You're blue!"

With a deep frown, Vlad nearly rolled his eyes at Jack's idiocy. But at everyone's wide-eyed stares, Vlad looked down at his hands. Just as Jack had exclaimed, his skin had gained a light blue tint. Turning back to everyone in the room, Vlad could see the concern in Jack's eyes, curiosity in Maddie's, confusion in Daniel and Kagome's, and finally suspicion in Kimiko's. When Jack suddenly reached out for him, Vlad quickly recoiled. Making sure to keep his teeth covered as best as he could, Vlad said, "Look at the time! I just remembered that I have some work to finish at the office. Let's catch up some _other_ time. Hm?"

Everyone blinked in confusion as Vlad suddenly left through the front door a few seconds before the sound of a car pulling away could be heard. With a narrowed gaze, Kimiko stood up from her seat. "Thank you for the tea, Maddie. I just remembered that I have a dress to finish making for Kagome. Kagome, let's head home," Kimiko said before walking to the door.

"Um... Sure, mom. Sorry, Danny. We'll study some other time," Kagome said with a small smile and shrug before following her mother out the front door.

The remaining Fentons blinked at each other in confusion. "Well, that was _weird_ ," Danny commented.

~:~

109 publications! After only a few years of studies, Kimiko Takahashi had published over 100 papers! Vlad frowned to himself as he skimmed through one of her most recent publications. He hated to admit it, but the woman was no fool. Everything that she had found was completely true. It didn't make sense! How did she know so much? Others in the field had devoted much more time than her, and yet Kimiko had made more advances than anyone. If Vlad didn't know any better, he'd think the woman was secretly half-ghost!

But that was impossible. He and Daniel were the only half-ghosts in existence... that he knew of... Vlad quickly paged his secretary. "Ms. Wilson, cancel all my appointments for the rest of the day. I'm stepping out."

" _Yes, Mayor Masters. I should warn you that the rest of your week will be a bit hectic, however_ ," the young woman replied through the speaker of Vlad's office phone.

"That's fine," Vlad said before rising and leaving his office. According to the files he had gathered, Ms. Takahashi had moved into Amity Park over the summer with her son and daughter. She ran a boutique in the mall while working on her research part-time. The family seemed normal enough. But it wouldn't hurt to do a bit of reconnaissance.

Vlad couldn't explain just _what_ had happened to him yesterday. It had felt as if the girl had been wearing a Specter Deflecter. That wouldn't be so suspicious. Kimiko probably made sure that her children were protected at all times. But that hadn't explained why his skin had shifted tones and his fangs had suddenly grown in. It was as if he had been mid-morf and was about to change into his ghost half right in the middle of the Fenton's living room. What a disaster that would have been!

But it begged the question: What exactly did Kimiko give to her daughter for protection and where did she get it? Also, just how much of a threat was Kimiko going to be?

~:~

Stepping into the clothing boutique named, " _K &K Designs_" Vlad let his dark blue eyes glance around at all the women that were browsing. The store was quite popular. Vlad smirked slightly. In addition to her research, Kimiko was a successful businesswoman. Vlad could definitely appreciate a likeminded soul.

Just as the song playing over the speakers shifted to one of today's more popular pop songs, a young woman in a navy polo and khakis approached him with a bright smile. "Can I help you find something, Mayor Masters?" she said.

"Yes. I am looking for Kimiko Takahashi. I have a bit of business to discuss with her. Is she in today?" Vlad questioned in his most charming tone.

The young woman blinked owlishly for a few seconds before a light blush graced her cheeks. "Um... Yes. Ms. Takahashi is always here. She's in her office upstairs. I'll...um... I'll just take you to her," the girl said.

Vlad quickly read her name tag before smiling brightly. "Oh thank you, Tiffani. You're so helpful," Vlad complimented with his hands folded neatly behind his back. The girl looked to be in her early twenties. But once her cheeks flushed and she held her cheek softly, she looked no more mature than a teenage schoolgirl. Vlad nearly laughed out loud as he watched the blonde stutter while leading him towards the elevator. He wasn't listening to a thing that she was saying, but he stared right at her with a pleasant smile. She nearly dissolved into another round of giggles. If only Maddie had this reaction to him...

"Here you go, Mayor Masters. Ms. Takahashi is in here. I don't think she's seeing anyone right now," Tiffani said before pushing the white door open with a small knock.

Vlad peered into the room before his eyes widened in surprise. The office was very open with a few bare mannequins and piles of fabrics. In the center of the room was a white, circular platform and at the back was a glass desk with a computer and land line. Stepping into the room behind Tiffani, Vlad observed the half-finished articles of clothing that littered the tables along the room.

"Ms. Takahashi? You have a visitor," Tiffani said.

Vlad looked forward to see Kimiko look over quickly, her loose curls moving with the turn of her head. Despite not being the slightest bit interested, Vlad did have to admit that the small woman looked ravishing in her business attire. She smiled brightly at Tiffani before saying, "Thanks, Tiffani. I'll take it from here."

Tiffani nodded once before quickly leaving the room with a scurry. Vlad nearly rolled his eyes at her unwanted attempt at "checking him out". Some women were so obvious and transparent. Slapping a charming smile on his face, Vlad approached Kimiko. "Hello, Kimiko. I am sorry to show up on such short notice, but I require your services."

Kimiko raised a brow at him before turning away from her sketchbook. "How may I help you, Mayor Masters?" Kimiko replied with a smirk.

"I see you made the connection, but please call me Vlad," Vlad replied.

"Alright. How may I help you, Vlad?" Kimiko replied evenly.

"You'll have to forgive me. I did a bit of snooping and learned about your talents for fashion design. I am in need of a new suit and I was hoping to purchase one of yours. I must say that I am quite impressed with the quality of your work," Vlad schmoozed. It was no secret. An original or custom made design from Kimiko was worth a pretty penny. The woman had had her designs featured in dozens of fashion weeks and had built up a reputation as a fashion icon. Her clothes were sold in boutiques all over the world, but this was the first time that her clothes had become available for sale in stores in America.

"I appreciate that you took the time to read my bio," Kimiko replied with a smirk before continuing, "I'd be happy to help. Step over here for me."

Vlad was only slightly put off by Kimiko's lack of a response to him. Vlad was quite accustomed to women's attraction to him- whether it be towards his wealth or power. The only exception so far had been Maddie. He had tried to woo her with literally all the money in the world, but she had still chosen a life of middle-class existence with _Jack_.

As Vlad stood on the circular platform, he watched Kimiko gather a notebook, pencil, and measuring tape. Vlad decided to try again. "I must apologize for my hasty exit yesterday. It was terribly rude of me."

"It's alright. I just thought that you weren't feeling well," Kimiko replied and faced him.

Vlad allowed her to measure the length and width of his arm as he continued on, "I would have at least liked to pick your brain a bit. I was able to glance through a few of your publications. You're quite knowledgeable on the topic of ghosts."

"Thank you. I wasn't aware that you were a ghost enthusiast," Kimiko replied in an even tone as she measured the diameter of his other arm.

"Why yes I am. I have been quite interested in the field since college," Vlad bragged. "I must ask. What is it you hope to accomplish with your current work?"

"Truthfully, I'm here to test a theory of mine," she hinted while placing her tape measure across his shoulders.

Vlad nearly swallowed. He kept remarkably still as Kimiko encroached on his personal space. From this close up, Vlad could smell a delightful hint of vanilla from her. The few seconds she spent oh so close to him seemed to drag on. Vlad could feel the hairs on the back of his neck slowly start to rise. When she suddenly pulled away to write in her notebook, Vlad released the breath he had been holding. "A-and what theory is that?"

"It's a bit out there. But I'm mostly interested in studying Danny Phantom."

" _Oh_? Why is that?" Vlad asked and refrained from grinning madly. He was getting somewhere.

"From what I've seen, Phantom is a special sort of ghost."

"Special how?"

"He doesn't seem to fit in any of the current classifications for ghosts based on his physical appearance alone," Kimiko explained as she measured his waist circumference.

"I'm afraid I don't follow," Vlad admitted.

"It would be hard to notice if you've lived in Amity Park for a while. But you have to admit that his appearance has changed."

Vlad frowned. Daniel's appearance? He had to admit that Daniel was taller and looked a bit older... Had she really picked up on that?

"It's not uncommon for ghosts to change their appearances if it's one of their abilities or they experience an increase in power. Ghosts go through a sort of metamorphosis whenever they increase in strength, but it's usually sudden. Danny Phantom seems to have slowly aged physically. It's curious. He looks like he's gone through a ghostly puberty. I've noticed something similar in the Wisconsin Ghost."

"Are you saying that these ghosts are mimicking humans in their development?" Vlad questioned.

She laughed. "I knew it would sound crazy. Even to someone who studies ghosts. Danny Phantom appears much taller, his hair seems to have grown, his voice has deepened even with the ghostly echo, and he looks like he's gained muscle mass. The Wisconsin Ghost looks like he's gained a bit of body mass as well in the time that he's been in the news."

"Body mass?" Vlad parroted. Had he gained mass? Was that a nice way of saying that he had gotten _fat_? She must be blind. He'd made sure to monitor his diet and weight. There was no way that he'd _gained weight_.

"It's mostly ghostly tissues reminiscent of human, muscle mass. I've never seen anything like it. Can you open your legs a bit for me?"

Vlad nearly balked at her words before he remembered where he was. With a nod, he widened his stance to allow her to measure his legs. "What do you think it is? Do you think these ghosts could be mimicking human biology? Perhaps they're doing so because they are unable to accept that they are ghosts and are still hanging on to their humanities?" Vlad questioned.

"That's a good theory, but I don't think so. I think that we're dealing with something different- something _new_ ," Kimiko said. "I think the Wisconsin Ghost and Danny Phantom are two instances of something we've never seen before- an entirely new breed of ghost."

Vlad's eyes widened slightly.


	11. Peeping Tom

"A subspecies!" Vlad shouted as he paced in his living room. His white Persian, Maddie, watched him pace the room with a questioning meow as she sat on the coffee table. "She thinks that Daniel and I are a _subspecies_!"

Vlad collapsed onto his couch with a heavy sigh. Hearing Maddie's meow, Vlad cracked an eye open and glanced down at her. She looked concerned for him as she tilted her head to the side. "I'm sorry, Maddie. This woman may be a bigger threat to me than I first thought. She is extremely observant and quite intelligent. I need to keep an eye on her," Vlad told Maddie the cat. He watched her use her paw to push the remote control closer to him with another meow. Vlad grinned widely. "You never cease to amaze me with your wonderful ideas, Maddie. Illegally spying on the Fentons is a wonderful show, but I think the cameras would be better suited at the Takahashi residence."

The Plasmius-inspired bug that was resting on the living room wall of the Fenton home quickly reactivated before flying out of the window of the home and across the street. The bug slipped in through an open window upstairs before flying through the seemingly empty house. Vlad frown at the video feed. Was no one home? His silent question was answered when he spotted the family having dinner in the kitchen. Vlad narrowed his eyes with a smirk. He planted his bug on the wall with a clear view of the family.

" _How is school going kids_?" Kimiko asked her children with a soft smile.

" _Mr. Peters gave me detention because I had my skateboard on the ground. I wasn't even riding it_!" the son complained before slumping in his seat with a deep frown.

" _I'm sorry to hear that, Judai. Do you want me to see your teacher_?" Kimiko suggested with a sympathetic look as she soothingly rubbed her son's shoulder.

" _No way, mom! I can't have my MOM show up at my school just because I got a detention. Thanks, but no thanks. You'll totally ruin my reputation_ ," Judai said matter-of-factly.

" _We're living in a time when getting detention is good and having your mom come to your school is grounds for social suicide. Reputation is EVERYTHING_ ," Kagome said sarcastically with a roll of her eyes. Vlad couldn't help but nod along with what the girl was saying. He just didn't understand today's youth.

Kimiko smiled softly at her son before shaking her head. " _Well, alright. I'll stay out of it. Just try not to get into any more trouble or the school will have to call me. Then I'll HAVE to go in."_

" _Yeah, mom."_

Vlad watched the family eat their dinner peacefully for several more seconds until Kagome pulled her cellphone out to glance at it. Kimiko frowned. " _Kagome, no phones at the table please."_

" _I know. I'm sorry, mama. Danny just texted me. He's going to see a movie. Can I go?"_ Kagome asked with a hopeful smile on her face. Kimiko frowned a bit.

"What is _wrong_ with teenagers these days? They know that there are ghosts about and yet they still leave their homes late at night. What's even _worse_ is that plenty of these young girls are putting their lives at danger for a _boy_. It's foolish and irresponsible. Don't you agree, Maddie?" Vlad commented as he gestured widely at his television. Maddie mewed in reply before curling up on his lap.

" _I suppose it will be alright_ ," Kimiko started. Immediately, Kagome got up from the table and ran out of the room. " _Kagome_!?"

It was a few seconds before Kagome reappeared with her purse and a pair of shoes. " _Thanks, mama! I'll be back later! Love you_!" she called out as she left in a rush.

Kimiko sputtered a bit as she watched her daughter go before slumping back in her seat. She offered Judai a look, but he just shrugged. A medium-sized dog strolled into the room before going over to a bowl of water for a drink. " _It'll be alright. Danny's a good boy_ ," Kimiko said.

" _Famous last words_ ," Judai said without bothering to whisper. Kimiko shot her son a glare.

Before Vlad couldn't hear any more family discussion, he could hear that dog from before growling lowly. Without any warning, the dog started barking loudly at the wall where his bug was perched. " _Aki, daijoubudesuka_?" Kimiko asked the dog with a concerned expression.

" _There's a huge bug on the wall! It looks cool_!" Judai exclaimed.

With a displeased frown, Kimiko said, " _I'm getting the broom_."

" _Don't kill it, mom_!"

With a panicked expression, Vlad quickly took control of the bug and flew it out of the window. "Well, _that_ was a wasted effort," Vlad grumbled as he moved the bug back over to the

Fenton residence. "It looks like I'll have to find some _other_ way to gather intel."

~:~

Kimiko was in the middle of washing some cabbage in preparation for dinner with her family. She was sure that Kagome would love these cabbage rolls. After placing the cabbage in a large pot to steam them, Kimiko heard the doorbell chime. Had Judai forgotten his key again? With a knowing smile already in place, Kimiko went to open the door. She was surprised to see that it wasn't Judai sheepishly standing on the other side of the door.

"Ah, Kimiko. I must apologize for the intrusion, but I was hoping that you would be free to discuss some more ghost theories with me," Vlad started in a charismatic tone with a charming grin on his face.

Kimiko frowned slightly. "I suppose that it would be alright. I was just in the middle of preparing dinner," Kimiko said and stood aside to allow Vlad entrance into the home.

"Would you like some help?" Vlad offered.

"I suppose two sets of hands are better than one. Thank you, Vlad," Kimiko said and led Vlad onto the kitchen.

Vlad couldn't keep the derision off his face as he looked around the small kitchen. "I must ask. A woman of your standing should be able to afford living in a much wealthier neighborhood and a much larger home," Vlad pointed out. "Why don't you?"

"You're right. I can. I just choose not to. My family has everything that it needs right here. I feel that unless you have a large family, living in a large home would only separate and distance you. It just sounds so lonely," Kimiko said as she cut up some carrots.

Vlad didn't reply. His newest home was state of the art. It symbolized everything he stood for, namely being larger-than-life and _reeking_ of money and power and it did so much better than his last mansion. She may be a ghost expert, but what did she know about extravagant living? But, maybe she did have a point. There were some times when his home felt _empty_. Standing in her kitchen or even in the Fenton's middle-class home felt like just that- a _home_. When was the last time he lived somewhere he could call a home? Nonetheless, he was proud of his mansion. He'd have someone to live in it with him eventually (a certain red-haired someone).

"I'm curious. You seem so interested in ghosts. Are your children the same way?" Vlad asked while chopping some mushrooms.

"I'm afraid not. None of my children seem to have taken an interest in the paranormal. But that's alright. Children are free to follow their own paths," Kimiko answered.

So Kimiko would be the only one in the family to worry about? Good. That meant that whatever the girl had done had been unintentional and probably because of her mother.

"Do you have any children of your own?"

Vlad blinked owlishly at the innocent question. Children? He'd once entertained the thought of having children- 1 or 2. But that had been decades ago. "Oh no. I've never had children. I suppose it just wasn't in my future," Vlad said and batted his blue eyes with a wistful sigh. Surely, such a maternal woman would take pity on him.

"That's a shame. I can't imagine what my life would be like without Kagome and my boys," Kimiko said and added the carrots to a large mixing bowl.

Vlad raised a brow. " _Boys_?"

"Yes. I have three of them. Judai is the youngest. The other two are all grown up and out of the house," Kimiko explained with a fond smile.

"But, you're so young!" Vlad exclaimed before he could stop himself. _'Sugar cookies_!' She might get upset with him. Women could be very temperamental about their age.

"I'm only thirty-six. I had my first child when I was sixteen."

Vlad wasn't sure how to respond to that. After several seconds of deliberations, he said, "You've done well for yourself."

"I consider myself very successful. I've always wanted a large family and now I do. Sometimes, I miss the days when they were all still smaller than me," Kimiko said wistfully.

Vlad pushed down the slight discomfort he felt with the topic. Kimiko sounded so maternal and loving when she spoke about her family. It only served to remind Vlad of what he _didn't_ have. He could have bought a family easily. But he had wanted a family with one, specific person. But now, she wanted nothing to do with him. She didn't even want friendship, much less romance.

Vlad decided to change the topic. "About your research, have you found anything new?"

"I think I have, but it's all preliminary observations."

" _Oh_?" Vlad nearly grinned like the Cheshire Cat. _Finally_ , he was getting somewhere.

"I see what you're trying to do. But, it's not going to happen. You'll have to wait for me to publish my findings just like everyone else," Kimiko told him with a friendly smile.

Vlad returned the smile easily. She really was a sweet woman. It was a shame that he would have to eventually take drastic measures against her. It wasn't her fault. But he had to protect his way of life. But first, he had to get her comfortable enough to speak freely around him... "Kimiko, I do hope that you don't think of me as out of place, but I must ask you something. Would you be willing to have dinner with me this weekend?" Vlad asked in a hopeful tone with his best smile.

Kimiko stared up at Vlad in surprise. She cleared her throat a few times before sighing. "I am so sorry, Vlad. I hope I didn't give you the wrong idea, but I'm not interested in dating right now. I hope you'll understand," Kimiko said before patting his shoulder consolingly and moving to check of the cabbage leaves that were being steamed.

Vlad stared down at the spot she had inhabited with a confused expression. Had she really just turned him down? More importantly, did she _really_ think he was interested? Well _that_ was obvious. He'd have to find some way to convince her.

~:~

Kagome placed her books into her locker before closing the metal door shut and pulling out her phone. She quickly texted Danny to let him know that she was leaving school and would meet him at his house in a few minutes. Luckily, cheerleading practice hadn't taken too long today. With quick movements, Kagome finally made her way out of Casper High for the day.

It had first started as a weird feeling in the back of her mind. She couldn't explain it, but Kagome could have _sworn_ that she heard footsteps behind her. But whenever she turned around, there was no one there. Was there a ghost following her? Did ghosts usually walk or was this one just trying to freak her out? Kagome picked up her pace slightly and kept her phone in hand with her fingers ready to dial 911 if she needed it.

Sam nearly cursed. Moving out from behind a trash can, Sam quickly jogged to catch up to Kagome. If only she could go invisible like Danny, then she could follow Kagome without any problems. When Kagome suddenly turned around again, Sam ducked in between another alleyway.

She had been following Kagome since the Japanese girl had left school. Was it creepy? Probably. But more importantly, it was _necessary_. Sam was _sure_ that this girl was hiding something, especially after what Danny had told her what had happened to Vlad yesterday. Since when did touching someone make you turn blue like a ghost?

Sam quickly hid behind someone's stoop and observed Kagome. She was almost home now. Maybe Sam could find some way to get into the house? Or was that too creepy? Instead of going home, however, Sam watched Kagome climb the steps to Fenton Works and step inside as if she owned the place! Sam glared before standing and turning to head home. You think Danny would be more careful around that girl! But _no_. Like all teenage boys, Danny was letting a pretty face distract him _again_. Well, Sam wasn't fooled. If she was going to get some real dirt on Kagome, she had to had to take extreme measures.


	12. A Forest of Roses

Sam took a deep breath as she leaned against the wall next to the Casper High secretary's office. School had let out half an hour ago and most of the student body had already gone home. Sam had turned down going to the arcade with Danny and Tucker to be here. Frustratingly, she noticed that they had invited Kagome to go with them instead. Sam rolled her eyes. Mustering up her courage, Sam violently pushed open the door to the secretary's office.

" _Run_! There's a ghost attacking the school!" Sam shouted with faux fear in her voice. Immediately, Ms. Simmons, the slightly pudgy secretary, screamed before jumping up from her desk and fleeing the room. The woman hadn't even bothered to save Sam! Rolling her eyes, Sam quickly entered the room and locked the door behind her. She was quick to close the blinds before approaching the grey, file cabinets in the room. "Last names starting with T through V. Ah-ha!" Sam exclaimed when she found the right drawer. Eagerly pulling the drawer open, Sam flicked through the files until she found the one she was looking for.

"Let's see here... Takahashi, Kagome... Her file lists her address... Birthday...Blood type... Class schedule... Contact information... Dang it! Isn't there anything good here?" Sam frowned. Suddenly, she spotted something that may be useful. "Locker number 819 and the code is 11-06-16."

Sam quickly unlocked the door before poking her head out into hallway. When she didn't see anyone, Sam made a run for it. She couldn't find anything useful in Kagome's record, but maybe her locker would be a different story? With a serious expression, Sam approached locker 819.

There was always the thought in the back of her mind asking, "Was this too much? Was she going to drive herself crazy trying to out Kagome?" Maybe Danny was right? He _did_ know Kagome a lot better than Sam did. Maybe he wasn't wrong to trust the girl? Maybe Sam was just... _jealous_? Kagome was new in town. She was probably a normal girl just trying to make friends. It sucked that she wanted to make friends with Danny of all people, but-

"What's this?" Sam questioned and pulled an old book out of Kagome's locker. It looked like it was written in Japanese. Flipping through the pages, Sam didn't see anything suspicious. There were some drawings of some plants at the top of some pages with characters that Sam couldn't understand written below them. Sam was about to put the book back when she recognized one plant in particular. " _Wait a minute_... Those are Blood Blossoms! I _knew_ it! She _is_ some kind of secret, ghost hunter! I better get this book translated ASAP," Sam muttered while pulling out her phone. She quickly took some pictures of the book's cover and a few pages for translation later. Shoving the book back in the locker, Sam shut the door before running out of Casper High. Now, she had her proof. Danny would _have_ to listen now.

~:~

Not sure who to ask in town to translate the book without getting a suspicious look, Sam turned to the internet. She quickly found an online tutor and sent them the pictures, claiming to be a student struggling with understanding the material in her Japanese language class. She only had to wait a few minutes for a response.

Tutor: **It's no wonder you're having trouble. This book is quite old and it makes some of the characters hard to read.**

Wes: **Can you translate it?**

Sam waited for the tutor to send their reply through the chat box. She had decided to take on a false identity just in case. All this espionage was starting to make her a bit paranoid.

Tutor: **I'll try my best. I think the book's title is "Remedies and Wards Against the Paranormal". The pages you sent me were talking about the different plants that can be used to defend against ghosts.**

Tutor: **...Are you sure this is for your class? It seems like strange material to give a high school student.**

Sam nearly let out a shout of triumph. Quickly screenshotting the chat box, Sam printed out the conversation as well as the pictures from her phone with her wireless printer. Once she had everything that she needed, Sam paused. She _knew_ Kagome wasn't to be trusted. The girl was probably following in her mother's, ghost-hunting footsteps! But, how was Sam going to tell Danny? She had to tell him in a delicate way. Sam didn't want to make him upset with her. Rightfully, the anger should go to Kagome. _She's_ the one who is a liar.

~:~

Kimiko nodded her head along with the beat of the song playing through the speakers of her store. After the week she was currently having, it was nice to relax and ignore all her worries. She'd been hounded almost mercilessly by Vlad Masters the past few days. It was more than obvious that the man didn't take rejection well. He had called her at least once a day since she had turned him down, doing his best to subtly throw how successful and wealthy he was at her. Kimiko rolled her eyes. She may not be a politician, but she was more than financially stable and quite successful in her own right. She wasn't impressed by his millions. She had no reason to be. Besides, money and power didn't do it for her. Hopefully, he would move on and find some other woman to woo.

After hearing two, quick raps on the door to her studio, Kimiko called out, "Come in!"

"Ms. Takahashi? You have a delivery," Tiffani said with a slight blush to her cheeks.

Kimiko turned to face the young girl with a questioning look. Where was the package? When Tiffani stood to the side, a man with a large bouquet of red roses walked into the room. Kimiko's eyes widened in surprise. He wasn't the only one to enter, however. Two more men came in with their own bouquets of roses and left them on one of her tables. "We'll bring the rest up," the first man said before leaving.

"Wait. What _rest_?" Kimiko called out behind him.

"There's like a hundred bouquets! They carried them all in here! They're in the elevator on their way up! It's _so_ sweet. I didn't know you had a man, Ms. Takahashi," Tiffani said with a squeal and bright smile.

Kimiko frowned before approaching one of the bouquets. She pulled the card from its holder with her suspicions rising. She read the card before sighing loudly.

 **For the woman who has almost everything.**

 **-Vlad.**

Kimiko could see that the other two bouquets had cards as well. With a small frown, she read them too.

 **I would love to get to know you better. Please say yes to dinner.**

 **-Vlad**

 **I do hope you like the color red. ;)**

 **-Vlad.**

She nearly ripped up the card when she read that. The men had just brought five more bouquets into her studio, each with their own little, white cards. "Excuse me! You can't leave these here! How am I supposed to work with all these flowers in the way?" Kimiko called out after them.

"Sorry, lady. We were given orders to deliver them all directly to you. We can't take them back either. They've already been paid for and there's a no refund policy," the man replied.

Kimiko was about to argue some more, but her office phone started ringing. She grabbed the handset before asking, "Hello? Kimiko Takahashi speaking. How may I help you?"

" _Did you get my flowers_?"

Taking a deep breath first to calm herself, Kimiko said, "I hope you're planning to come get them all."

" _And why would I do that?_ "

"Because someone on my staff is highly allergic to roses and I can't have hundreds of them moving through the store," Kimiko lied. Honestly, she loved red roses. They're her favorite flower. They were such a classic and bold way to show attraction. But when one of the delivery men placed a bouquet on her desk, she glared harshly at it.

" _That's a shame. I suppose I'll have to try a different flower. Tell me, is anyone allergic to carnations_?"

Kimiko sighed. He wasn't going to stop. Was he? She had to at least give him points for persistence. "If I said yes, would that stop the flowers?"

" _Of course! I am so happy that you've agreed to dinner. I'll pick you up at tonight at 8 o' clock sharp. I'll see you then_ ," Vlad said before quickly hanging up.

Kimiko sighed deeply. When she turned back around, almost all of her floors were covered in red. There was a slim path that the men used to get through the room as they kept bringing in more bouquets. Kimiko could see Tiffani trying to work her way out of the rose forest in the corner of the room. Great. What was she going to do with all of these!?

~:~

The kids were out tonight. Kagome was at a schoolmate's party (Kimiko was really proud of her daughter for finally branching out and making friends) while Judai was having a sleepover. (You couldn't call it a slumber party. Those are for little girls and he was a teenage boy). Kimiko finished applying her makeup just as she heard the doorbell ring. _'Let's get this over with.'_

Vlad adjusted his suit a bit as he waited for Kimiko to appear. He was a shining example that perseverance always won out. If all went according to plan, he would be able to sweet talk her entire family history out of Kimiko before the night was over. Vlad smirked. The door opened.

He was a one-woman kind of man. Vlad wasn't the type to fawn over a pretty face or curvaceous body. He wasn't a hormonal, teenage boy. He was a mature, 42 year old man for goodness sakes! But at this point in time, his body needed a bit of a reminder of that fact. Kimiko's fitted dress, smokey eyes, and bright red lips were doing an excellent job of kickstarting his heart rate.

"Hello, Vlad. You look handsome in your suit," she complimented with a small smile.

Vlad cleared his threat once before saying, "Yes. Well, you look extraordinary this evening, my dear. Come. We don't want to miss our reservation."

~:~

This was not going well. Or maybe it was more accurate to say that this night was not going according to plan. This was _not_ what Vlad had in mind when he asked Kimiko out to dinner. He was supposed to have learned her secrets by now. Maybe he should have skipped all this and invisibly snooped around her house instead?

They were sitting at a table for two near the back of Amity Park's most extravagant restaurant. Their dinner plates had already been cleared away and only two glasses of red wine and a few wax candles occupied the tabletop. Vlad wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye as he tried to regain a normal breathing pattern. His cheeks were gaining a light flush as a grin threatened to split his face in two. When was the last time he had laughed this much and _not_ at Jack's expense? "My dear, you are something else," Vlad complimented.

"Thank you. You're not so bad yourself," Kimiko grinned. She hadn't thought that it was possible, but she was actually getting along with Vlad Masters. Once the man had stopped shoving his status in others' faces and had bothered to relax, he was actually decent company. She was almost ready to forgive him for turning her studio into a rose garden.

"I'm serious. You're a sophisticated, cultured, and intelligent woman. I feel as though I've found a kindred spirit," Vlad said with a lidded gaze.

"I have to admit that I was feeling hesitant about this date, but it's gone relatively well. I'm glad I said yes," Kimiko replied honestly before leaning forward and matching Vlad's stare.

~:~

Danny was out on patrol tonight for the first time in weeks. He had been putting off his responsibilities mostly because he could have. There were no ghosts attacking. There hadn't been a real attack in months! It was a bit concerning, though. His parents' portal was still up and running and he was sure that Vlad's portal was still working. What was keeping all the ghosts away? As much as he wanted to hope that this was true, Danny highly doubted that all the ghosts finally realized that they were no match for him. So what was keeping them away?

Danny decided to fly over the park one more time before heading home. Everything was quiet tonight. It didn't make sense to stay up late for nothing. Besides, if there was an attack, his parents' equipment would detect it.

To be honest, he could have gone to that party that Star was throwing. Kagome had invited him and metaphorically passed some of her "coolness and popularity" onto him. Or at least that's how Star had phrased it when she had reluctantly handed him an invitation. Danny wouldn't have minded going for Kagome's sake, but he wasn't a big fan of partying with the popular crowd. He'd already learned his lesson years ago. Besides, patrolling the city was _so_ much more fun.

With a jaw-splitting yawn, Danny spared the park below him a quick glance. Nothing out of the ordinary here. The park was mostly empty except for a stray dog marking a tree and that couple taking a walk. Danny would have flown right by them if he hadn't recognized that head of grey hair at the last second. With a gasp, Danny stared down at the couple in surprise.

"Is that Vlad? With Kagome's _mom_?" Danny questioned. Suppressing a disgusted shiver, Danny decided to move in closer. Turning invisible, Danny observed the pair as they walked.

"I don't think I've ever watched an American football game," Kimiko was saying.

"Well, that won't do. I have some recordings of the Packers last season at my mansion. You simply _must_ watch them," Vlad said.

"Okay. I'll give it a try."

Danny couldn't suppress the shiver this time. There was something _weird_ about adults dating. Or maybe it was just the idea of Vlad dating? Wait a second. Why _was_ Vlad on a date? _'Don't tell me he's going after everyone's mom now_ ,' Danny thought in disgust. Danny wasn't sure what Vlad was planning, but he knew that the older man was definitely up to no good. Kimiko was a really nice lady. She'd been so kind to him, treating him like one of her own. She didn't deserve to be a part of whatever Vlad was planning. Danny narrowed his eyes at Vlad's back before quickly firing an ice beam at the older man.

"I'm sure that I'll make a Packers fan out of you yet, my dear. Who knows? Maybe- _Yow_!" Vlad said but was cut off by his own loud cry of pain. Turning around quickly, Vlad couldn't see anyone behind him. Feeling the back of his pants, Vlad was surprised at how cold it felt. _'What in the world? Is that_ ice?'

"Are you alright?" Kimiko asked him while reaching out for his arm.

Taking one look at the concern on her face, Vlad smiled and chuckled. "Yes. I'm fine. I must be imagining things," Vlad said and led Kimiko further down the path they were walking. He was sure of it. That attack _had_ to have been one of Daniel's ice beams. There was no one else around and no one else in town who could produce such an attack. Vlad mentally frowned. He would have to have a word with Daniel about intruding on matters that _didn't_ concern him.


	13. Blood Blossom-Flavored Lipgloss

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to review you guys! :D Your comments fuel my tortured, artist's soul. X'C

~:~

 _~Last week of October...~_

" _Are you sure he was on a date_?"

Danny's eyes widened as he gestured wildly. "Yes! I _saw_ him. He was _totally_ flirting with Kagome's mom- _ew_ , by the way," Danny said to his computer screen.

Jazz frowned thoughtfully before folding her arms over her chest. " _Well... Does Kagome know? Not just that Vlad is putting the moves on her mom, but does she know how much of a creep he is? Does Kimiko know_?" Jazz asked.

"Definitely not. I gotta warn them," Danny said. He was lucky to have finally caught Jazz at a time when she was awake and not too busy. He didn't want to unnecessarily bug her with his problems, but this had been important.

" _Just be careful, Danny. Vlad's probably up to something and he'll see you coming from a mile away. You gotta play it smart_ ," Jazz warned.

Danny smiled at his sister. Even though she was miles away, she was still nagging him. "I know, Jazz. Thanks for the advice. I would have asked Sam, but she's been AWOL lately. I don't know what's up with her. She's always been so busy, but she won't tell me or Tuck what she's doing."

" _That's doesn't sound like Sam_."

"I know. Everyone's been acting weird lately," Danny mused.

" _Just make sure that_ you're _not acting weird, little brother_."

~:~

Halloween wasn't one of Kagome's favorite holidays, but she was hopeful that this year would change all that. She was going to be spending the holiday socializing with friends- at a costume party no less. She already knew that she was going as Red Riding Hood and she was _really_ hoping that Danny would go with her. She just had to ask him first...

Kagome was feeling a bit nervous about this. It's why she had put it off for so long. The last time she'd asked him to a party, he'd turned down the invitation at the last minute. No one at the party had been upset by his lack of an appearance, but Kagome had felt remarkably lonely without her messy-haired friend at her side. But she couldn't give up now! She had to at least try. And this time, she would drag him with her kicking and screaming if she had to. With a determined expression, Kagome set off in search of Danny.

He was standing in front of his locker with Sam and Tucker. Perfect! She could even invite Tucker and Sam right now to save time. Danny would be more likely to go if his best friends were going to. Plastering her brightest smile on her face, Kagome tapped Danny on the shoulder twice. He turned around quickly in question, but immediately brightened upon seeing her. "Hey, Kagome. What's up?" he asked.

"Hi, Danny. I wanted to ask you something," Kagome started and pulled the flyer she had gotten from Kwan out of her pink binder. She gave it to Danny and watched him read the dark, Halloween-themed flyer over curiously. "There's going to be a Halloween, costume party at the Nasty Burger this weekend. I know you don't really care for parties, but it would mean a lot to me if you came. You, Tucker and Sam are all invited."

"A Halloween party? You mean like with girls in costumes?" Tucker asked and snatched the flyer away from Danny. "I can already see the cat costumes now..."

"I'm not sure what to say," Danny started.

Before he could offer an official answer, Sam pushed her way in front of him. "How about _no_? Thanks but, no thanks, Kagome. Danny, Tucker, and I are already spending Halloween night at my house. We have a monster movie marathon already set."

"Oh... I didn't know," Kagome replied. Kagome tried not to overreact to the way Sam was glaring harshly at her. They'd know each other for months, but no matter what Kagome did Sam just seemed to hate her more and more. The way Sam held herself was so defensive and aggressive. Tucker stood off to the side, watching the two girls with a slightly panicked look.

"Well, I mean we can have the movie marathon any time. The party is only for one night. Right?" Danny inputted with a small shrug. Sam sent him a stunned look. Before Danny could continue, he was quickly tackled with a tight hug from Kagome. His cheeks burned as he awkwardly placed his hands on her waist.

"Thank you! Thank you! _Thank you_!" Kagome said into his ear with a giggle.

"This is going to be _sweet_!" Tucker exclaimed with a fist pump.

"Totally. I'll see you guys later. Don't forget to get your costumes," Kagome reminded them before leaving down the hallway.

Danny watched her go before turning back to his friends. Tucker was talking a mile a minute about the party and the different costumes he was hoping to see while Danny chuckled at his enthusiasm. When Danny looked at Sam, he was slightly taken aback at the blatant hostility on her face. "Sam... Are you okay?" Danny asked. Why did that feel like such a dumb question?

" _Me_? Oh, I'm just fine. It's not like I was looking forward to spending the creepiest night of the year with my friends and some of the best horror movies known to man," Sam replied oh so sarcastically.

"Look, Sam. We can still have the movie marathon. We can do it in the day and then go to the party at night. Your home theater's in the basement anyways. It's not like we'll be able to tell what time it is. It'll be basically the same thing," Danny soothed.

Sam wanted to be angry. She _really_ did. No, wait. She was angry, but not with Danny. Her anger was geared towards Kagome. Sam only felt hurt towards Danny. They had been planning this night together (with Tucker) for almost a week! And he just changed their plans without even considering how _she_ felt! Just because Kagome decided to bat her eyelashes at him. _UGH. Boys_.

"Yeah. Sure. The same thing," Sam grumbled. It wasn't the first time Kagome had been put first over her. It was about time she told Danny the truth about Kagome. Sam had been

biding her time, hoping to get some more dirt on the girl, but now was a good a time as ever.

~:~

The movie marathon had gone relatively well. It was nice to finally spend time with her friends without having any interruptions. No distractions, no worries. Just a gory clash between three of the best, female monsters in history and your two best friends. The perfect world Sam had crafted had quickly fallen apart, however, when Danny had announced that he was heading home to get ready for the party. Tucker had left with him, the two chatting actively about the night ahead of them.

Remarkably, Sam had kept her temper in check. Even as she laid on her bed with the curtains drawn and the lights off, she didn't feel remotely inclined to shout, curse, or punch something. There was the small, vindictive part of her that wanted to leave Danny to fend for himself with Kagome. _'Then he'll learn_ ,' she thought with a scoff. But she couldn't do that to him. Danny was her best friend. She... cared about him.

Rolling over to glance at her bedside clock, Sam stared at the glowing numbers on the clock's face. '9:49'. If she left now, she would still have enough time to get Danny out of that party and maybe convince him to come back to her place to watch some more movies? Him _and_ Tucker, of course. Sam quickly sprang up from her bed, grabbed her phone, and left the room.

Sam had been about three blocks away when she'd first heard the music that was blasting at the party. Once she was close enough, Sam could see lights flashing from within the darkened restaurant. There were some kids hanging around outside, some sipping from their red, plastic cups and others laughing way too loud. Sam stomped right past them on her way into the Nasty Burger.

 _'Well, this is fan-freaking-tastic_ ,' Sam thought as she looked around the dark room. The strobe lights would flash and move around the room, highlighting the gyrating bodies on the dance floor for only a second. There was a sour smell and a thick heat in the air. _'Is that sweat and beer? Gross_!' Covering her nose with one hand, Sam slid along the wall, using the flashlight on her phone to scan faces. If she texted Danny or Tucker, would they be able to hear anything in here? Sam felt like her internal organs were about to be knocked out of her chest by the vibrations in the air. Why was the music so _loud_!?

"Sam!"

Jumping slightly, Sam turned around with hope in her eyes. Had Danny found her in this mess? Sam was a bit confused by the giant calculator that was bouncing in time with the beat of the pounding music. "You made it, Sam! Where's your costume!?" Tucker yelled from within his calculator costume.

"I don't do costumes. Where's Danny?" Sam asked and folded her arms.

" _ **What**_ **!?"** Tucker shouted at her and cupped his hand around his ear.

Rolling her eyes at him, Sam grabbed his ear between her thumb and index finger before yelling, "Where's Danny!?" into it.

" _Ow_! Geez, Sam! You didn't have to shout in my ear! I left him with Kagome a few minutes ago! He was sitting at the back where we normally sit!" Tucker yelled.

"Thanks!" Sam yelled before quickly pushing her way through the sweaty crowd. Roughly elbowing a senior boy out of her way, Sam started her search for Danny. Her violet eyes scanned the occupied booths, but she couldn't find him anywhere. But she saw someone else who would know where he was...

"Kagome!" Sam shouted as she approached the booth where Kagome, Star, and Paulina were laughing.

Kagome turned to Sam and smiled. "Hi, Sam! I thought you weren't going to show."

"You'd _like_ that. Wouldn't you?" Sam nearly hissed with narrowed eyes.

"What are you talking abou-?"

"Where's Danny!?" Sam asked without wasting anymore time.

"Look, she's lost without her other half," Star taunted.

"Don't you just hate it when a girl can't move on after being dumped?" Paulina asked with a smirk.

"I don't have time for _you_ ," Sam spat at the two popular girls and grabbed Kagome by the arm. With a surprising amount of force, Sam dragged Kagome away from the booth and towards the exit.

"Sam! Sam! Can you slow down for a second?" Kagome shouted, but was ignored. Kagome tried her best to follow Sam through the crowd of people it was relatively easy. Sam was moving like a bulldozer. Once the two girls were out in the cool, night air, Kagome tired again. "What's your problem?"

" _You're_ my problem. You may have Danny and everyone else fooled, but I know what you're _really_ up to," Sam told Kagome while pointing an accusatory finger at the girl.

With a deep frown, Kagome pushed Sam's hand out of her face. "Oh _really_? Well, please tell me what I'm _really_ up to, Sam. I'd _love_ to hear it," Kagome replied sarcastically.

"I know that you're secretly some ghost hunter. But let me tell you, if you even _think_ about hurting Danny-"

"Why would ghost hunting _possibly_ hurt Danny?" Kagome interjected. Sam shut her mouth. Before Sam could offer some excuse, Kagome went on. "Look, Sam. You like Danny. I get it. But you can just relax. Okay? Danny is just my friend. No one is trying to steal him from you."

"That... That's so not even true!" Sam stuttered nervously.

" _Spare me_. It's blatantly obvious to everyone, except Danny. Instead of jumping down my throat for just trying to be his friend, why don't you go find him instead?" Kagome said with a roll of your eyes. "He's probably out here somewhere. Just before you came in, he went outside to call you. He got worried about you when you didn't show up."

"He...was worried about me?" Sam repeated in a stunned voice.

"Yeah. Of course he was. It's nice that you want to look out for him or whatever. But I'm the last person who would ever want to hurt Danny. Now I'm going back inside. If I see Danny, I'll let him know you were looking for him," Kagome said before going back towards the door. Sam watched her go with a wide-eyed expression. Her cheeks were slowly flushing. Danny had left Kagome alone because he was worried about her? That thought made Sam happier than she should have been. But, honestly, who cares!?

~:~

Where had he fallen off track? When had his mission become so insignificant that he could completely forget about it so easily? He was supposed to find out more about what she knew about ghosts. He was supposed to gather intel! How had he gotten in so deep that he was considering appropriate gifts for a one-month anniversary!?

"No, no, no. Kimiko won't like any of these," Vlad said and closed the browser page that was opened to an expensive assortment of diamond earrings. He had initially thought that a woman would always appreciate the biggest and most expensive gifts that money could buy. But Kimiko had stressed that she didn't care for flashy shows of money and would appreciate a thoughtful gift from the heart much more. But where could he buy something like that!? He had made the dinner reservation and had gotten his best suit back from the dry cleaners, but he had yet to get the perfect gift. Idly, Vlad searched up "good one month anniversary ideas".

Suddenly, his phone chimed in his pocket signaling that he had a new text message.

Kimiko: **I hope you're not planning to flood me with flowers again...**

Vlad grinned.

Vlad: **Of course not! I was thinking of going with a shower of diamonds this time. What do you think?**

Kimiko: **You're lying to me. Aren't you? Let me guess, you have no idea what to get for our one-month anniversary.**

Vlad frowned deeply. How did she-? Did _she_ have cameras on him?

Kimiko: **Tell you what, hun. Let's skip the gifts this time. I wouldn't want you to explode from the stress of picking a gift for little ole me ;)**

Vlad chuckled lowly as he shook his head. Yep. He had gotten sucked in _way_ too deep.

Vlad: **Deal.**

~:~

Danny scratched the back of his head as he stared down at the math problem in front of him. He chewed on his lower lip a bit before tapping his pencil against his head. Kagome watched him stare at the page for a few more seconds before reaching out to him. Danny quickly said, "No, wait! I _think_ I've got it."

"Okay," Kagome replied patiently. She waited quietly for several more seconds as she watched Danny stare at the problem. She was about to take out her phone to idly check her messages when she noticed Danny place his pencil to the paper. With a curious expression, Kagome leaned in to watch him write.

 _f'(x)= 2u-4_

Danny showed Kagome his paper. "Is that it?" he asked.

"Yes! That's it! You got it, Danny," Kagome replied with a bright smile.

" _Seriously_? I was just guessing! That's _awesome_!" Danny exclaimed with an excited smile.

"You shouldn't _guess_ , Danny. Come on. Why don't you try this one now?" Kagome suggested and pointed to another practice problem from Danny's algebra book. When she heard Danny groan loudly, Kagome pat his shoulder consolingly. "Be happy you're not working out the limits of trig functions."

"You're right. I'll stick with eleventh grade math," Danny joked.

"That's what I thought. Think you can handle this problem _without_ guessing?" Kagome teased before pulling out her calculus textbook. She did have a couple more problems to finish. Maybe she could get them done while Danny worked?

Danny pouted down at the problem Kagome had given him. It took approximately 3 seconds before his mind started to wander. Kagome's bed was so much softer than his. If he had been exhausted, Danny was sure that he would have fallen asleep on her bed without any problems. Danny tried not to blush at the thought of sleeping in a girl's bed. _'Just think about something else already!'_

"Are you having problems, Danny?"

Turning to Kagome in surprise, Danny saw her staring at him with a concerned expression. "Uh... No. I'm fine. Just spacing out," Danny replied before smiling softly.

"Do you want to take a break? Maybe get a snack from the kitchen or something?" Kagome suggested as shifted on the bed.

In her attempts at standing up from the bed, she accidentally brushed his shoulder with her own. Instantly, Danny felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention. The sensation brought back that twisty feeling in his gut that he felt whenever he was around Kagome. It was usually easy to ignore, but it became difficult whenever they came in physical contact. He'd felt something like this before. Whenever he tried talking to a girl he'd liked, his stomach would always flip-flop and his heart would start pounding like a drum in his chest. But, he didn't like Kagome like that. She's just his friend!

"Danny? Do you want something to eat?" Kagome tried again. He was still spacing out on her. Nonetheless, Kagome was about to go get them something to eat when she noticed Danny moving closer to her. When his slightly colder hand covered her own, Kagome looked down at it in confusion. His larger hand was completely covering her own where it rested on the bed in between them. By the time she looked up again, Danny was only inches away from her. Her face quickly erupted in a blush as she froze in place with a deer-in-headlights expression.

Was he going to _kiss_ her? _Now_!? He couldn't _kiss_ her! She'd never kissed a boy before! She wasn't ready for this! Kissing was for people who _like_ liked each other. She and Danny didn't feel that way about each other! Or did they? Danny must feel _something_ right? _'Oh boy_ ,' Kagome thought just before his lips touched hers. _'This is really happening to me_.'

A nervous, tingly feeling was slowly building within him as he moved in closer. Despite feeling like he wasn't in control of his body, Danny was very aware of what was going on. With every passing second, he got closer and Kagome didn't pull away. Did this mean that she liked him? Before Danny could contemplate this, his lips brushed against Kagome's soft lips. He must have stopped breathing. Was his heart still beating?

 _Thump-thump. THUMP-THUMP_.

Yep. Was this that whole "time slows down" thing that everyone talked about? It sure felt like it. Maybe he could get a bit closer...

" _Ow_!" Danny exclaimed as suddenly he sprang away from Kagome. His hand immediately went to his mouth, covering his now stinging lips. That _hurt_. Did she _bite_ him? Turning confused eyes onto Kagome, he asked "What was _that_?"

"What was what?" Kagome questioned with a confused look.

Danny rubbed his lips to sooth the pain, but wasn't helping. If it was even possible, the stinging and slightly tingly feeling was starting to spread throughout his face. He didn't want to offend her so Danny subtly scooted away from Kagome. She didn't bite him. She had been so still. He would have felt her moving. So what the _heck_ was that?

"Danny, are you alright?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Don't worry about it," Danny brushed it off.

"Are you sure? Your eyes are green," Kagome said as she tried to get a closer look at his face.

Danny furrowed his brows in confusion before glancing at the mirror on Kagome's vanity table. His blood ran cold as he stared at his reflection. Bright, neon green eyes had replaced his baby blue ones. Had he transformed!? No. His hair was still black and he still hand on his normal clothes. So why were his eyes _green_!?

"Danny?"

Turning back to Kagome with a frantic expression, Danny stuttered. "Uh... I just remembered that I forgot to change the uh...ecto-filtrator on the ghost portal. I better do it before my dad yells at me again!" Danny offered and quickly grabbed his books and backpack.

"What? Danny! Wait a second!" Kagome exclaimed and got up from her bed.

"I'll call you later. Okay? I just _really_ gotta get home _right_ now!" Danny shouted behind him as he dashed out of the bedroom and down the stairs. From Kagome's distant shouts, he could tell that she was still upstairs by the time he'd made it down to the first floor. Not even risking opening the door with his full arms, Danny just phased thorough the front door and invisibly ran across the street to his house.

He didn't stop running until he was safely locked in his room. With his back pressed against the door for a few seconds, Danny panted harshly with wide eyes. Quickly moving over to his nightstand, Danny searched his drawer until he had found a small mirror. With shaky movements, he held the mirror up to his face. He nearly dropped it. His eyes were still glowing green, but now his hair was a dull grey color! Not wasting anymore time, Danny grabbed his cell and texted Sam and Tucker.

 **SOS! I'm in my room. Hurry!**

Danny was sitting in the middle of his bed, checking his hair and eyes every few minutes. In the ten minutes it had taken Sam and Tucker to arrive at his house, Danny's hair had already taken on a grey-ish silver color. When is bedroom door suddenly opened, Danny sprang up from his bed in panic.

"Danny! What happened? We got your...message," Sam said as her eyes slowly widened.

"Dude..." Tucker offered as he stared at his best friend.

"Close the door behind you," Danny said as he started to pace. Sam and Tucker entered the room quietly, matching looks of worry on their faces. The sat on Danny's bed and watched him pace the floors.

"Danny, what happened?" Sam questioned in a soft tone.

"Yeah dude. You look like you tried to transform and stopped half-way," Tucker inputted.

"I don't know! My hair was black like ten minutes ago, but now it's turning silver and I don't know how to stop it! My eyes are green, guys! And what's even worse? Kagome saw them!" Danny said and ran his hands through his hair.

"When did Kagome see? Was she _here_?" Sam asked with a raised brow.

"No. I was over at her place," Danny answered.

"Why don't you just start from the beginning, Danny?" Tucker suggested.

"Okay... I was over at Kagome's going over the derivatives stuff from algebra class today. She was helping me and everything was going fine. But, then I messed up," Danny said with a sigh.

"Messed up how?" Sam pushed.

"I...I don't know _what_ I was thinking. But before I knew what was happening, I was leaning in towards her and I...kissed her," Danny said before collapsing onto his desk chair and holding his almost fully silver head.

"Dude!" Tucker exclaimed brightly. Tucker had been about to congratulate Danny, but froze when he saw the look on Sam's face. She looked angry, sad, and confused all in one. Tucker frowned sadly, but didn't move to comfort her. It would only serve to upset Sam more if he made any indication of her feelings in front of Danny.

"You _kissed_ her?" Sam repeated in a dark tone.

"I don't know how it happened! She didn't even try to stop me. I think she was probably just freaked out to be honest. Anyways, next thing I know, I feel like I'm getting shocked right on my mouth and my eyes are green. I just _freaked_. I literally ran out of her house with some lame excuse," Danny said with a hopeless look. "Now, I look like _this_ and I don't know what to do! What if I never go back to normal?"

Sam straightened out her back as she tried to reign in her emotions. There was a mighty storm brewing just beneath the surface. If only there was a ghost attacking right now. Then she'd have something to vent her anger and frustrations on. "Danny, I probably should have told you this before, but Kagome's hiding something," Sam started. Danny sighed and hung his head. "I'm _serious_ , Danny!" Sam said as she suddenly stood up. "I have _proof_. You can't trust her, Danny. She's had this book about ghost wards with all sorts of plants to use against ghosts. She's had it for months. I know because I saw it. I took pictures of it and had them translated. She's been lying to you, Danny. For all we know, she could have been using some Blood Blossom flavored lipgloss!"

"Blood Blossom-flavored lipgloss? Do they even _make_ that?" Tucker questioned skeptically.

"That's not the point, Tucker! You said that something like this happened to Vlad too. He touched her, then he started changing colors like her was turning into a ghost," Sam went on. Danny raised a brow at Sam before shooting Tucker a questioning look. Tucker shrugged once. "You have to believe me, Danny. I can _prove_ it to you," Sam said with immense conviction.

Danny sighed again as she shook his silver hair out. "Alright, Sam. I'm listening now. What kind of book is this anyways?" Danny asked.


	14. Dirty Little Secrets

Moi-Moi: Hey, guys! Just thought that I'd let you know that this story is officially complete on Wattpad. You can read the rest of the story there if you want. ;) Or, you know, wait for the chapters to come out here whenever I feel like updating. Your choice.

~:~

"Dude, don't you think you're overreacting? Just a _little_?" Tucker asked as he shot an amused look behind him. Danny was trying his best to remain inconspicuous as he hid behind Tucker and Sam. Every few seconds, Danny would poke his head up from the fortress made of his best friends' bodies that he'd surrounded himself with before ducking back down again when he thought someone was looking at him.

"People are staring at me. I can tell!" Danny stressed in a whisper as he hid behind Tucker's backpack. "I'm lucky my hair and eyes went back to normal after a few hours."

"Although I want to believe that Kagome wouldn't be able to keep her mouth shut and would go bragging to her _best friends,_ I have my doubts. No one's staring at you," Sam said and moved to the side. Unfortunately, she had caused a gap to appear in Danny's shield and he immediately freaked. He attempted to hide behind her, but Sam was faster. Giving him a literal push, Sam lead Danny towards his locker with him fighting her along the way. Tucker followed behind his friends with a grin and chuckle.

"No one's staring... How come no one's staring?" Danny questioned as he glanced at the other students littering the hall. They were either focused on a notebook, at their lockers, or chatting with friends. No one was looking at Danny... Weird.

"Maybe she didn't tell anyone, dude. I mean, how would you even go about explaining that to people? It sounds pretty crazy... Well, crazy to _other_ people," Tucker said with a shrug.

"Yeah. I guess you're right. I don't know why I thought she would," Danny said while inputting the combination to his lock. It bothered Danny how easily he believed that Kagome would turn on him. Maybe it was the paranoia? But, Kagome had been nothing but kind and friendly to him. She could be trusted. Right? Danny _had_ really thought about telling Kagome his secret, but the fear of rejection held him back. And to think, all it took was some matchmaking from Technus and a few days to get him to want to blab to _Valerie_ a few years ago...

"Uh-oh. Here comes trouble," Sam muttered so that only Danny and Tucker could hear.

Danny had about three seconds to collect himself before he heard, "Hey, Danny". With a small jump, Danny accidentally slammed his locker shut before facing Kagome. He saw Kagome jump as well before giving him a startled look. "Hey, Kagome! What's up? How are you? What's going on?" Danny fired off questions in an overly enthusiastic tone. His hands went from being slipped into his pockets, to lost in his hair, to gripping his biceps as he folded his arms over his chest all in a matter of five seconds. Finally, Danny decided to lean against his locker. He could hear Sam groan, " _Oi"_ from where she stood behind him. ' _Play it cool, Fenton!'_

"Not much. I kinda wanted to talk to you in private," Kagome answered.

Before Danny could answer, Sam stepped forward to answer Kagome for him. "Whatever you have to say to Danny, you can say it in front of us."

Kagome didn't bother to hold back an exaggerated eye roll. "Fine. I just wanted to apologize for yesterday. I can tell that the kiss freaked you out and I'm really sorry I let it happen. I just want us to be friends. Is that okay?" Kagome explained directly to Danny. She had a slightly nervous and unsure look in her eyes as she faced him.

"Uh... Sure. I'm sorry, too. I'm not exactly sure what happened," Danny replied with a shrug and sheepish chuckle.

Kagome smiled brightly in relief. "That's good to hear. Anyways, I'll see you around, Danny. I've got to meet with the other cheerleaders before classes start."

Danny watched Kagome walk away while blinking owlishly. "What... What just happened?"

"I think you just got friend-zoned, dude," Tucker replied. Sam rolled her eyes with an exaggerated groan while Danny shook his head with a small smile.

~:~

Kimiko held a hand over her mouth as she attempted to stifle her laughter. Not being able to hold it all in, a snort escaped her. She decided to rest her glass of red wine on the coffee table in front of her before she spilled the wine on the couch.

"You aren't supposed to be _laughing,_ Kimiko. I am not doing this for your amusement," Vlad grumbled and folded his arms over his chest with a stern frown on his face.

"I'm sorry, Vlad. It's just... I have _no_ idea what you're supposed to be! Are you a fish or a scuba diver?" Kimiko guessed and she fully turned towards Vlad with a bright smile.

"Not even close!" Vlad objected with a loud sigh while pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry, my dear. But, you are just _terrible_ at charades..."

"I don't know what to tell you! I'm normally great at this!" Kimiko exclaimed with a shrug as she leaned back onto the couch in Vlad's living room. She watched the man sigh again before miming out the same actions that he had been doing for the last five minutes. She watched Vlad move around in circles with his cheeks puffed out and his hands paddling as if he were swimming. "Are you... a dog?" she tried again. Vlad shot Kimiko a look that said, 'Are you _kidding_ me?' Throwing her arms up in the air, Kimiko shouted, "I give up! Just tell me what you are."

"I'm a duck-billed platypus!" Vlad exclaimed as if it were the easiest thing in the world. He reclaimed his seat on the couch next to her with a roll of his eyes.

" _What!?_ Duck-billed platypus do _not_ puff out their cheeks," Kimiko objected.

"I think you should just accept the fact that you are terrible at charades, my dear. It's quite alright. You excel in other areas. We can't be the best at everything," Vlad consoled while patting Kimiko's hand.

She stared at the smug and slightly mocking look that he had on his face before pouting and snatching her hand away from him. "You're just a cheater. That's all it is."

"Now, Kimiko. No one likes a sore loser," Vlad admonished with his index finger poised in the air.

Kimiko rolled her eyes before taking another sip from her wine glass. She had been in Vlad's home since lunch. The mayor had been kind enough to invite her over for lunch and she had... never left. In her defense, Vlad's company was extremely enjoyable. He always paid the utmost attention to her, almost as if she was his only care in the world. Initially, she had been wary of Vlad's advances, but he had washed away nearly all her doubts. He _acted_ like he was in this for the long haul. Well, at least for _now_ he was...

"What wold you like to do now? We can watch a movie or take a walk or play another game. Are you fond of chess?" Vlad suggested. He watched Kimiko stare at the far wall from over the rim of her wine glass while deep in thought. Smiling softly, Vlad ran his hand over and through her long hair. He had once thought that there would be no other woman for him besides Maddie. He'd always been attracted to Maddie's kind nature, physical beauty and intelligence. But Kimiko had all those attributes magnified. Kimiko seemed to ooze affection while still managing to dazzle and shine without even trying. Unlike Maddie, Kimiko seemed to be far ahead of her time with her understanding of ecto-biology. She really was one of a kind.

"Vlad... I need to know something," Kimiko finally said and put her glass back down.

"What is it, my dear?" Vlad replied with an easy grin.

"How long to you plan to continue this?" Kimiko asked and turned to face him.

"I'm sorry? _This?"_ Vlad asked with a confused look.

"Yes, _this. Us._ I have to be honest, Vlad. I told you that I wasn't interested in a relationship. I don't date for my children's sake, but also for my own," Kimiko said while scooting away from Vlad.

Vlad was quick to close the gap between them that she had created. "I more than understand, Kimiko. Your children are very important to you. They are both wonderful children. I understand that it is a mother's responsibility to put her children first."

"I'm glad you understand. I've only been in a serious relationship with one other man and that didn't end well. As you can tell, he left me to raise our children completely alone," Kimiko started. It was time that she be completely honest. If Vlad couldn't accept her after this, then he wasn't worth the effort anyways. Or at least, that's what she would try tell herself when she started bawling her eyes out later.

"He's obviously not worth mentioning. Don't even think about him," Vlad interjected.

Kimiko placed a hand over Vlad's. "I want to be completely honest. We all have baggage, Vlad. I'd rather have mine out in the open," Kimiko stopped him. Vlad swallowed. "We met when I was sixteen. From the second I met Judai, it was like this electrifying magic. I fell head over heels for him and I know he felt it to. Honestly, we were just two, crazy kids in love. Everything was _so_ perfect. But then reality set in.

"As you know, I had my first child at sixteen. I was _terrified_. I didn't know the first thing about being a mother. But when I thought about it, I knew that I couldn't get rid of my baby. I thought of him as a symbol of my and Judai's love. Judai, unfortunately, didn't see it that way. The next day after I told him, he was gone. He was eighteen at the time. He didn't need to stay with his parents anymore so he just left. Not even they knew where he went."

"That's terrible! How could anyone _do_ such a thing!?" Vlad exclaimed in shock and outrage.

"Believe it or not, it actually gets worse. My oldest son was a little over one at the time. We were living in a small apartment. I remember the day clearly. I was making dinner when I heard a knock on the door. When I opened the door, I was so shocked to see Judai standing on the other side. He had a bouquet of red roses and that boyish grin on his face. I just cried and cried. I was so happy that I just took him back without any hesitation. I shouldn't have done that," Kimiko scoffed.

"What happened after that?" Vlad asked tentatively.

"I got pregnant again. We'd used protection this time around, but it wasn't enough. I guess we were _meant_ to have this baby. I was even more terrified the second time around. How was I going to tell Judai? Eventually, I worked up the courage and told him. All my worrying had been for nothing. He was so _happy_. For the next few months, he was happy, supportive, and helpful. I couldn't have asked for a better partner.

"A few months after my second son was born, we ran out of diapers one night. The boys had been fussy all day and I was just exhausted. I hadn't slept for a full night in _so_ long. Judai offered to run out to get some diapers. I stayed and waited with the boys for hours. When the sun started to rise, I got worried so I called his phone. When I didn't get him, I dressed the boys and got ready to go down to the police station. As soon as I opened the door, I saw the pack of diapers on the welcome mat with a note on it that said, "I need some time to clear my head". You can imagine how upset I was at that," Kimiko said with a livid expression.

"You have every right to be. This Judai sounds like a terrible excuse for a man!" Vlad argued.

"That didn't stop me from taking him back a second time. In my defense, I made him jump through hoops to get back together with me. For a few months, he was more like my nanny than my boyfriend. Eventually, we did get back together. The honeymoon phase was great. The kids were happy, we were happy, and we had a little girl on the way. It didn't matter that I was twenty-years-old and with three kids. My life was practically perfect. And then Judai brought up marriage..."

Vlad felt an uncomfortable, twisty feeling in his chest and stomach. He had been fine up until the point where Kimiko mentioned marriage. Trying to subtly reign in his bearings, Vlad listened to her story.

"That didn't pan out, though. Kagome was two when he left. This time, he left me an envelope with almost 28,000 yen. I was so fed up with him and men in general at that point. I just felt sick of dating," Kimiko scoffed.

"But, he came back," Vlad filled in the blanks. He _had_ to. Kimiko hadn't even mentioned her last son yet.

"You bet he did. He said that he was a changed man. He had a vision that if he didn't come back, another man would take his place and end up raising his kids. He didn't want that, so he came back as quick as he could. I nearly castrated him that night," Kimiko said with a roll of her eyes. She smiled when she heard Vlad chuckle. "I'm not sure what exactly made me say yes _again._ I guess some of us never learn from our mistakes. But I did and shortly after we were having our fourth child. After Judai was born, I was completely convinced that I was going to end up raising my four kids alone. But, Judai stuck it out with me. I was completely shocked to say the least. Months turned into years and before I knew it, Judai was turning _thirteen_.

"I was glad that I hadn't dropped my guard though. This time, I caught him trying to sneak out the house in the middle of the night. I'm not sure how I managed to keep my voice down. I didn't even care to hear what his excuse was this time. I just let him go. That was just a few months ago. It's taken so long to get my family back to a good place. The _last_ thing I want or need is for another man to come in and ruin things for us. Vlad, I'm fine on my own. I don't need a partner," Kimiko said to Vlad in a no nonsense tone with a fierce look in her eyes.

Vlad nodded in acknowledgement. "That's what I love most about you. It's so hard to find a woman of your maturity and composure my own age. I feel eternally lucky to have found you. I adore you and I'm sure that I can come to cherish you and your children as well," Vlad answered honestly.

"You better. Because I'm done giving second chances," Kimiko warned with a serious look in her eyes.

~:~

Maddie flipped through Jack's calculations with a pencil in hand and a look of concentration on her face. Spotting another error, Maddie quickly rectified the miscalculation, her frown deepening. And Jack wondered why his experiment wasn't working...

Hearing a light knock on the door, Maddie shouted, "Come in!" without taking her eyes off the paper.

"Hey, Maddie," Kimiko greeted as she poked her head in through the door.

"Hi, Kimiko. I think Kagome is upstairs with Danny. They're just doing homework," Maddie said before turning the page.

"That's nice. I actually came to speak to you, Maddie. I think I find myself in need of a bit of _girl talk._ Normally, Kagome is always ready to listen. She's so mature that I sometimes forget that she's only sixteen. But, she's been spending so much time with her friends," Kimiko said and took a seat on the couch.

"I know how that feels. Don't worry. I'll get some tea and cookies," Maddie said while marking the page she was on and closing the notebook with a smile.

Once the women were seated with their snacks laid out on the table before them, Kimiko turned to Maddie with barely concealed glee. "Okay. I should start by saying that I've been seeing someone," Kimiko started.

Maddie gasped. "You _have?_ Tell me _all_ about them! Do I know him?"

"You definitely do. We've only been serious for a little over a month, but I'm worried about the kids. What if they don't like him?" Kimiko fretted.

"Well, as a mother, we always put our children first. We hope that they'll be just a _little_ understanding, but honestly. They're _teenagers_. Their maturity and compassion only goes so far," Maddie said with a shake of her head.

"Oh, but Kagome is extremely mature for her age and observant. I can't hide anything from her. I'll have to come clean soon. I'm almost positive that Kagome will try to be supportive. But I'm worried about Judai. He doesn't act like it, but he's an extremely sensitive boy. I think he's still holding on to the hope that his father will come home. I've tried to get him to see reason, but it usually ends with us fighting," Kimiko explained with a frown.

"Then I'm afraid that there's not much you can do. Perhaps it would be best to ease the idea onto the kids?" Maddie suggested. "But you still haven't told me who he is!" Maddie said with an eager grin.

Kimiko snickered before waving Maddie off. "Alright. Alright. I'll tell you. Keep your jumpsuit on," Kimiko said with a cheeky grin. "It's Vlad."

The grin that had been on Maddie's face slowly fell. For several seconds, it felt like there was something ringing in Maddie's ears. After shaking her head slightly, Maddie rested a hand onto Kimiko's shoulder. "Kimiko, are you sure about that? _This?"_

"What are you talking about? I think knowing who you're dating is kind of important. Don't you think? I'm sure that it's Vlad, Maddie," Kimiko joked.

"No. Kimiko, Vlad may seem like a charmer, but he's not all that he's chalked up to be," Maddie started. Glancing around to make sure that they were alone, Maddie lowered her voice and admitted, "I haven't told Jack this, but Vlad made a move on me."

Kimiko's smile fell. "He did what? When was _this_?" Kimiko couldn't keep the slight jealousy out of her tone. Was Vlad _cheating_ on her?

"It was a few years ago. The more I've thought about it, the more I realized that he's had feelings for me for quite sometime," Maddie answered. "I don't mean to upset you. I just don't want you to jump into this with a blindfold on."

Kimiko sighed and rested her elbows on her knees. With her hands clasped in front of her, she rested her forehead on the hands. Kimiko felt Maddie's hand rub along her back soothingly. "Thank you for telling me, Maddie. I have to ask though. Are you planning on telling Jack?"

"...I've decided not to tell him," Maddie admitted and hung her head. Kimiko frowned. "I know what you're thinking. But despite the secrets, Vlad is Jack's closest friend. Outside of the family, Jack doesn't have too many people that he's close to. He's been ridiculed by so many. So many people have turned their backs on him. I can't take his only friend away from him."

"Don't you think that should be _his_ choice? These things never stay in the dark for long, Maddie. It won't look good when Jack finds out that you kept this from him for years. No matter how close he is with Vlad, he's supposed to be closer to you," Kimiko said.

"I know. I'll handle it," Maddie replied and hung her head. Now her turn to console, Kimiko rubbed a hand along Maddie's spandex-clad back.

"Mama?"

Looking up, Kimiko spotted Kagome standing on stairwell with Danny close behind her. Kagome had her bag on her back and was descending the staircase with a curious expression. Kimiko smiled. "Hi, sweetheart. Are you finished with your homework?"

"Yeah. What's up?" Kagome answered, her eyes going back and forth between Kimiko and Maddie.

"Mom, are you okay?" Danny asked with a frown. His mom had looked worried about something. Was everything alright?

Maddie sat up straight and shot a frantic look at Kimiko. "I think we got the better end of the deal, Maddie," Kimiko started with an easy smile. Maddie frowned in confusion. "Most mothers tell me that their teenagers just don't seem to care about anything other than themselves. And here we are with such caring sweethearts," Kimiko smiled before approaching Kagome. Pulling her daughter in for a tight hug, Kimiko went on. "I love you so much, Kagome."

"Oh. Okay. I love you too, mama," Kagome said awkwardly and pat her mother's back. Kagome shot Danny a wide-eyed and confused look. Danny shrugged cluelessly at her.

"You're so right! It means so much to me that you care, Danny! You're so sweet," Maddie said and stood up from the couch with her arms opened wide.

The second he saw his mother coming closer, Danny backtracked. "Oh. That's great, mom. I'm gonna go back to my room now. See you later, Kagome!" Danny exclaimed and quickly fled the room.

"I'm gonna head home now, mama. I'll see you later," Kagome said before quickly fleeing as well.

Kimiko smirked. "Nothing freaks a teenager out more than an overly affectionate parent," Kimiko chuckled. Maddie laughed as well with a shake of her head. "Now, if you'll excuse me Maddie, I have to find a certain man with a _lot_ of explaining to do."

~:~

Kimiko: We need to talk.

Vlad stared down at the simple text message with a sense of dread filling his gut. Kimiko usually signed her texts with a cute emoji or a lighthearted joke. As he sat in the back of his town car, Vlad tried to think about anything he had done that could be used against him. There was nothing! He'd been behaving himself lately. Scout's honor. Maybe this was old business?

But how would Kimiko know about his past transgressions? Had Daniel blabbed to her!? No. Daniel wouldn't stoop so low. He'd have to reveal his own secret in the process. Maybe he was just overthinking it. He probably forgot a date night or something. Now more secure and relaxed, Vlad tucked his phone inside his jacket pocket. He'd just apologize and promise not to forget again. Kimiko was rather accepting of his minor mess ups. At least he wasn't walking out on her...

Vlad nearly growled. How could anyone be so _foolish?_ To have so much in life- a devoted and extraordinary woman at your side and a growing family- and then throw it all away? Vlad couldn't understand it. He'd spent so much of his life alone. And though he'd never admit it to anyone, he really did crave companionship. There were the obvious things that he craved- money, power, and to be acknowledged as superior to many. But underneath it all, he was really a lonely man who had only _just_ found companionship.

It didn't matter that Kimiko and her children came as a packaged deal. From what he'd looked into, the children were well-behaved. The girl, Kagome, was exceptionally bright, talented, and quite mature for her age. Vlad could easily see himself liking the girl. The son, however... Vlad hummed to himself. A few behavioral problems. But that was to be expected considering his situation. Kimiko always stressed how the boy had a passion and talent for music. Unlike the other boys he hung around, he could have a real future.

"We're here, Mayor Masters," the chauffeur said as the car came to a stop.

"Thank you, my boy. You can take a drive around the block. I'll be here for a while," Vlad said before exiting the car and approaching the steps. Before he could ring the doorbell, the door was pulled open to reveal an angry Kimiko. "My dear, you look absolutely ravishing this evening."

"Save it, Vlad. I think you owe me an explanation."

She seemed a bit too mad for a missed date night. Vlad entered the house before shutting the door behind him. When he saw Kimiko's foot begin to tap expectantly, Vlad swallowed. "What seems to be the problem?" Vlad finally asked.

"I had a talk with Maddie today. She told me that you came onto her a few years ago. Is this true?" Kimiko asked. She didn't care to waste time playing guessing games. She had been turning the possibilities over in her mind all afternoon. She almost driven herself crazy with all the worry. She just wanted the truth now.

"...Like you said, Kimiko. We all have baggage."

Kimiko stared up at Vlad's resigned expression before sighing. Great. Now what? ' _Dump him,'_ she thought before she could stop herself. She really wanted to give dating another shot, but to try it with a man that had feelings for another woman? She wasn't ready for that.

"Let me explain," Vlad pleaded. "It feels like so long ago. I've cared for Maddie for decades, since we met in college. I fell head over heels for her. I was going to make my move on her, but then there was the accident. After Jack's blunder, I caught ecto-acne and was bedridden for some time. Once I was better, I went on to make a name for myself and secure my millions. I thought- at the time- that I could use money and power to steal Maddie away from Jack. But, I had been wrong. When I came on to Maddie, I was way out of line. She's never forgiven me for it and I don't blame her."

"How do you feel about her now?" Kimiko asked, her anger slowly ebbing away.

"I still care for her," Vlad answered. At Kimiko's narrowed gaze, he quickly stuck out his hands in a placating gesture. "Let me explain! I am learning to care for her as a friend. I _thought_ that she was the woman for me. But then I got to know you."

When Kimiko's distrustful gaze didn't let up, Vlad sighed. "You'll have to bear with me, Kimiko. I've never been in a real relationship before. There were a few girls while I was still a teen, but it's been quite some time since then. But I do know that in the past weeks you've made me happier than I've felt in a long time. I'm not perfect, so I'm okay with wanting to be selfish in that I won't let go of such a perfect woman such as yourself."

Kimiko kept the frown on her face for several seconds before releasing a sigh. "I find it hard to believe that you've stayed single for so long. You're too good at knowing how to charm a woman."

Vlad grinned. "What can I say? I'm naturally charismatic," Vlad replied and pulled Kimiko into his arms. In their time together, they had yet to kiss. Vlad was all for taking things slowly, but he felt compelled to "step on the gas" (so to speak). They had just leaped over a huge, emotional hurdle. Kissing was the proper response. Right? Vlad didn't second guess his gut feeling.

Kimiko had been surprised when Vlad had suddenly leaned his head down to place a kiss to her lips. She blinked in confusion for a few seconds before closing her eyes softly and slipping her hands behind his head. ' _Finally! Geez, what had he been waiting for?'_

~:~

Kagome sighed as she turned the steering wheel to the right. She was sure that her mother was going to freak out once they got home. Kagome spared Judai a look out of the corner of her eye. He was slumped low in the passenger seat with a deep frown on his face. "So what excuse am I supposed to give _this_ time?" Kagome asked in a tired tone.

"Can we not? It's not like I'm in any trouble or anything," Judai trailed off.

"Judai, you tried breaking into a brewery! What makes you think you're _not_ in trouble!?" Kagome shouted.

" _I_ didn't do anything! It was Max's idea. I was just there," Judai huffed.

"Yeah. I'm sure the police would have accepted that excuse," Kagome said with a roll of her eyes. "What were you _thinking?_ You _know_ better! What's mom going to say!?"

Judai sat up quickly and gripped Kagome's arm. "You _can't_ tell mom, Kagome!"

"Why not!? Maybe I should. This is the third time I have had to come pick you up from somewhere after you get into trouble."

"I'm not in trouble! I got out as soon as the alarm went off. I didn't get caught. There's no reason to freak out," Judai grumbled.

"Judai-"

" _Jayden,"_ Judai corrected in a strained voice. "I hate it when you and mom call me Judai. That's _dad's_ name. It's a nightmare having the same name as him. I never know who you're talking to."

"Of course we're talking to you. Dad's not here," Kagome answered.

"But he's coming back," Judai argued.

Kagome sighed softly. "Whatever you say. I still have to tell mom about tonight."

"But-!"

"If I don't tell her, you'll just do it again! I'm tired of covering for you, Judai. You're my little brother. I just want you to be safe. You're not safe when you're following other boys around when they have the stupid idea of breaking into stores after dark. Do you know what would have happened if the alarm hadn't gone off? They would have stolen alcohol and tried to get you to drink with them. Then you'd have to come home with the smell of beer on you and you would have given mom a panic attack," Kagome said. "What if there had been cameras?"

Judai slumped in his seat again and stared out the passenger side window. He played with the wheel of his skateboard that rested on the floor in front of him. "I'm sorry, Kagome. I really am."

"I know you are. But this _has_ to stop, Judai. I know you're upset, but this has to stop. If it's your friends convincing you to do stupid things, then get new friends. They're not going to bail you out of trouble when they're sitting in a cell next to you at the police station. You're too good of a kid to let anyone drag you down to their level," Kagome told him honestly.

"Thanks, Kagome," Judai said before staring out the window again.

"No problem," Kagome answered before turning down onto their street. There wasn't anyone out despite it only being a little after seven. People in Amity Park tried to head inside once the sun went down. No one wanted to be out an about when things started going bump in the night ( _literally)._

Parking the car behind the house, the pair exited the vehicle before heading towards the backdoor. Kagome took out her keys to open the door, Judai right behind her. "I'm going up to my room. I'll... I'll talk to mom later," Judai said.

"Okay. I'm proud of you, Judai," Kagome replied.

Judai groaned. " _Jayden,"_ he corrected.

Kagome ruffled her brother's hair as they left the kitchen together with small smiles in place. Kagome had been focussed on Judai so she had been confused when he had suddenly stopped. What was he staring at? Looking ahead, Kagome took in the sight of her mother... _kissing_ a man in a suit. Was that _Mayor Masters?_ Judai's skateboard fell from his limp hand with a loud clatter. Immediately, the pair pulled apart with startled expressions.

"Mama?" Kagome questioned with flaming cheeks.

"K-Kagome. Judai. Hi, kids," Kimiko said as she rubbed her hands along the back of her pants. Vlad was thoroughly preoccupied with staring at the ceiling and wasn't bothering to speak.

"This is _so_ embarrassing," Kagome moaned and covered her face with her hands.

"What the _hell!?"_ Judai exclaimed angrily.

Kimiko's nervous embarrassment was quickly being pushed aside by her stern upset. "Judai, watch your language," Kimiko admonished her son. This hadn't been how she'd wanted her kids to find out about her and Vlad, but...

"You were _kissing_ him!" Judai accused and pointed to Vlad.

Kagome shook her head to dispel the images that Judai was making her rehash. "I... I think I'm going to get ready for bed. I'm not hungry anymore."

"Now, kids-" Kimiko started.

"How _could_ you, mom? Don't you even care about dad?" Judai asked with tidal waves of hurt in his eyes.

Kimiko was sure she heard the sounds of her heart cracking. That look was one she'd never wanted to see on her children's faces. So hurt and betrayed. Kimiko took a steadying breath. "Judai, sweetheart-"

"I know he's been gone, but it's only been a few months! What's he going to think when he comes back?" Judai said as he gestured wildly. Kagome tried to place a comforting hand onto Judai's shoulder, but he pulled away. He turned on her next. "Why aren't you saying anything? Don't you care that mom is just... _just..."_

"Judai, it's not that big of a deal," Kagome reasoned with a shrug. At Judai's scoff of disbelief, Kagome tried again. " _Otouto,_ dad's not coming back," Kagome said patiently.

Judai looked like he'd been slapped. He looked from his mother to his sister and back. His mother looked like she did when she wanted to hug the life out of him and Kagome had that look on her face whenever she was looking down on him as if he were a child. Finally, his eyes landed on Vlad. He narrowed his gaze before walking right up to the older man. Judai glared up at Vlad's dark blue eyes before saying, "I know what you're trying to do, but you better give it up."

"Judai-!" Kimiko exclaimed.

"I don't give a damn what anyone says, you're _not_ replacing my dad. You might as well get _lost,"_ Judai hissed.

"Judai, that is _enough_ ," Kimiko said in her firmest tone. "I won't tolerate this disrespect. Go to your room. I'll be right up to discuss your punishment."

"You're punishing _me!?_ I'm not the one stepping out on dad!" Judai shouted before throwing his arms up in the air with a sound of frustration.

It was Kimiko's turn to be shocked. Vlad had been intent on staying out of the family affairs in order not to complicate matters, but he felt that it was time to step in. "Now, son-" he started. It had been a slip of the tongue. He hadn't meant to refer to the boy as his actual son.

" _Don't_ call me that," Judai hissed before turning on his heel and rushing towards the front door.

"Judai!" Kimiko called out. Vlad attempted to grab the boy by the hood of his sweater, but Judai was able to slip through his fingers. Judai stormed out of the house without shutting the door behind him before turning the corner. Barely a second had gone by before Vlad felt Kimiko and Kagome push past him as they ran out the door as well. "Judai! Come back!" Vlad heard Kimiko cry out.

"Judai!" Kagome shouted frantically.

~:~

Kimiko hung her head as more sniffles escaped her. Kagome sat next to her at the kitchen table, not making a sound. A police officer was collecting a statement from Vlad in the living room while another wrote some notes onto his notepad.

They'd each searched the entire neighborhood at least three times. But Judai had just vanished into thin air. Several of the neighbors had already come out to ask what was wrong, but Kimiko had been sobbing too much to offer any explanation. She was sure that her eyes were swollen and blazing red by now. She had already stopped bothering to wipe away the tears. Instead, they collected in a puddle on the table in front of her.

"Ms. Takahashi?" an officer spoke up once he entered the room with Vlad angrily following behind him.

"Yes?" Kimiko questioned, her head snapping up immediately.

"I just wanted to let you know that we're heading out. If we get any leads, we'll let you know," the officer whose name tag read "BRIGGS" said.

"I... That's _it_?" Kimiko asked before hanging her head again.

"Isn't there anything _else_ you can do?" Vlad asked the officer in an accusatory tone of voice.

"Like I told you, Mayor Masters. Since the child is thirteen and this _is_ Amity Park, we've got all available officers out looking for him. We'll find him as soon as we can," Officer Briggs said in a strained tone. Vlad released a noise of frustration before glaring at the man. "Good night."

Kagome sighed and got up to see the officers out. She watched Vlad immediately take her seat and begin to comfort her mother. She could hear him whispering soothing words to her while his hand rubbed her back. He welcomed her completely when she rested her head on his shoulder. Kagome decided to leave them alone.

She showed the officers to the door before saying, "Thanks again, officers."

"Kagome?"

At the bottom of the steps, a barefooted Danny with bedhead was staring up at her in concern. He watched the police officers go with a suspicious look before climbing the steps. "What's going on? The flashing lights woke me up. What happened?" he asked.

Kagome sighed. "Judai ran away."

" _What_? Why?" Danny balked.

"When we got home tonight, we saw our mom kissing Vlad. It was a bit of shock. Judai freaked out and ran out of the house. We searched the neighborhood for him three times and the cops looked around too, but he's just _gone,"_ Kagome explained as tears started to gather in her eyes. She quickly blinked to dispel the forming tears before staring down at her feet to hide her face.

"I'm really sorry. I'll help however I can," Danny said before pulling Kagome to him.

"You don't have to. I'm not sure what else to do anyways," Kagome said. Her voice was a little muffled by Danny's t-shirt.

Danny held Kagome to him with a serious expression on his face. He'd try to calm Kagome down the best that he could and then he'd go looking for her brother. Maybe he would let Tucker and Sam know what was going on. He'd try to duplicate himself so that he could search the town twice as fast. When he heard Kagome sniffle softly, he rubbed his hand on her back. He had to find her brother and _fast._

"Kagome? Is that you?"

The pair straightened up at the sound of a new voice. So Danny wouldn't see the tears that were falling from her eyes, Kagome quickly wiped her face. Once she was sure that she was presentable, she peered around Danny to see who had called out to her, but she froze. Danny turned as well, but he had no idea who the man at the foot of the steps was. He was a bit scruffy-looking with his beard stubble and uncombed hair. He wore an old, red sweater over a black tee with some black, ripped jeans and black boots. He had a rucksack slung over his shoulder. He was smiling.

" _Dad_?" Kagome called out, not believing her eyes.


	15. Just Couldn't Leave It Alone

Moi-Moi: Hey guys! Just wanted to let you know that this story was already finished some time ago on my Wattpad account… I even posted two chapters to the sequel there. Yep… I think a new one is coming out either today or tomorrow. Just thought I'd let you know. -.-'

~:~

Kagome's eyes couldn't go any wider. No matter how many times she blinked, nothing changed. That was definitely her father standing at the bottom of the steps. He was grinning up at her brightly as if he didn't have a care in the world. "W-where did you come from? How did you get here?" Kagome stuttered and pointed to her father.

Judai chuckled a bit before climbing the steps. Once he was standing next to his only daughter, he smiled down at her. She hadn't changed too much in his absence. His brown eyes glanced at the the messy-haired boy who was standing behind Kagome. The boy was shooting him a suspicious glance. Judai returned the look before turning back to Kagome. "How are you, Kagome? How's your mom? Is she here?" Judai asked and looked inside the open doorway.

Acting fast, Kagome blocked the doorway with her body. "I don't think you should go inside. Now's not a good time for a visit," Kagome hissed.

"What are you talking about, Kagome? Where's your mother?" Judai asked before trying to move her out of his way. Stubbornly, Kagome fought against him. Frowning, Judai called out over Kagome's shoulder, "Kim! Kimmy!"

"No!" Kagome shouted and tried to push her father back down the steps.

"Kagome! What's wrong with you?" Judai couldn't help but ask. Was she sick or something?

"Judai?"

As if a switch had been flipped, Judai's face immediately lit up brighter than a Christmas light. He moved around Kagome and quickly slipped into the house. There she was. Standing in the living room in a curve-hugging dress that made him miss her even more. Her eyes looked red. Had she been crying? She wasn't still crying over him, was she? Judai took a step towards her with his arms open, but she stepped backwards. "Kim? I know you're probably upset," Judai started.

With a noise of frustration escaping her, Kimiko snatched up the vase of red roses that was on the living room table and threw it at him with deadly accuracy. Judai ducked quickly, a soft curse escaping him as the vase sailed over his head and out the door. He could hear the glass shattering on the pavement outside. Judai swallowed and raised his hands in a defensive gesture. Kimiko grabbed the stack of coasters that were resting on the table before throwing each one at him with loud grunts. "Kim! Wait! Let me explain!" Judai shouted.

" _Shinjimea!"_ Kimiko shouted at him as she threw the final coaster and hit him in the nose. _(Translation: Go to hell!)_

Judai cursed silently as he cradled his nose. "Okay. I probably deserved that. But, just let me explain-" Judai started.

"What is all that racket?" Vlad asked as he stepped out of the kitchen. Both men frowned at each other. It was like a reenactment of an old western. The tense stare down was only missing a tumbleweed to roll across the room.

"Who the hell are _you?"_ Judai asked.

"I was about to ask _you_ the same," Vlad replied.

"He was just leaving," Kimiko said while pointing at the door. When it looked like Judai was about to talk again, Kimiko interrupted him. "I told you don't come back, Judai. When you left, I _told_ you not to come back. I've _had_ it with you. You've turned your back on this family too many times. I _told_ you that you could leave if you wanted, but don't you _dare_ to come back."

"Kim, I know. And I'm sorry. I really am. Just... Don't send me away yet. At least let me see the kids. Where's Jay?" Judai asked and looked up at the steps.

"That's not your concern. You lost all the rights you had when you walked out on him," Kimiko said, slowly approaching Judai like a lioness cornering her prey. Judai tried to stop her, but she wouldn't hear of it. "He's not _your_ son or _our_ son. They're not _our_ children. They're _my_ children."

"Don't do this, Kimmy. I know you're upset with me-" Judai started.

"There is _nothing_ you can say to me anymore! I don't want anything from you, but for you to _leave._ It's not that hard to understand. It's all you've ever done," Kimiko said and turned her back on him. She climbed the stairs one at a time. She'd had enough stress for one night. She needed an aspirin and a good rest.

Judai sighed deeply. He saw Kagome slip into the house with that boy following close behind her. "Kagome, where's your brother?" Judai asked.

Kagome sighed before giving her father an exhausted expression. "He ran away," she answered.

" _What!?_ Why didn't anyone say something? We have to find him. We have to-"

"Don't bother, Judai. We already called the police and searched for him ourselves," Kagome said with her arms folded. Judai frowned. Did she just call him by his name? "I'm going to check on my mom."

"Don't worry, Kagome. I'll tend to her. Why don't you get some sleep?" Vlad suggested and made his way towards the steps.

Judai narrowed his gaze at the older man's back. They'd only just met, but Judai couldn't stand that guy. "Kagome-"

"Can you please leave? I don't know why you came, but I'd rather you just left," Kagome said with a sigh. At her father's shocked expression, she went on. "You haven't seen how hard it's been on us lately. It tore mom apart when you left. Judai kept saying that you would be coming back. But, you just left. _Again_. I can't speak for my brothers, but I'd rather not have a father who's only there when he feels like it."

Judai nodded to himself. He'd been running from his responsibilities for so long. "It probably doesn't mean much, but I am sorry, Kagome. You and your brother are almost all grown up. I just didn't want to miss out on anymore of your lives," Judai said.

Danny felt conflicted. He wanted to go to Kagome, but he also didn't want to move and draw attention to himself. Kagome looked completely indifferent. But Danny was sure that she was hurting. Before he could take a step towards her, he noticed a flashing, blue light. "Who's that?" He asked and pointed out the door.

Kagome looked around her father to see a police cruiser pull up. An officer was opening the door to the back of the car. Kagome's eyes widened. "Mama! They found him!" she shouted up the stairs before dashing out the front door.

Kimiko was running down the steps before anyone could blink. She had Vlad on her tail, but stopped when she saw the officer leading Judai into the house. She nearly cried again in relief. Dashing over to him, she pulled him tightly into her arms, afraid to let go. "Thank goodness," she whispered into his brown hair.

"We found him hiding behind a dumpster in town," the officer said and frowned down at the boy. "Young man, don't you dare pull this stunt again. You should feel lucky to have a mother who cares so much about you."

"Thank you so much officer," Kimiko said. The officer tipped his hat to her before making his way out the door.

Judai sighed from within his mother's constricting hug. She worried too much. He was perfectly fine. He was about to tell her so when he noticed a familiar face in the room. "Dad!" he shouted before ripping himself away from his mother in order to tackle his father in a hug. "I _knew_ you'd come back," Judai whispered into his chest.

Kimiko swallowed the ball that was forming in her throat. She looked to Kagome, but Kagome gave her a sad look. Kimiko sighed. When she felt Vlad's hand on her shoulder, she rested her hand on top of it.

"I... I'm not staying, kiddo," Judai said down to his son while patting his head.

"Why not? You're _back_. Why are you leaving?"

Judai looked at Kimiko, but she snubbed him. He even tried looking to Kagome, but his own daughter ignored him. He was on his own here. "I just came to visit, son. To check in on you all. I'll be in town for a few days, but I'll be leaving after that."

"But you and mom-"

"Don't worry, kid. Everything will work out. Just try not to make things too hard on your mom. Okay?" Judai said with a small smile.

Judai pulled away from his father with a frown. "Yeah. Okay," he replied with a monotone voice. "I'm going to bed."

"I think it's time for _everyone_ went to bed," Kimiko said as she glared her ex down. Vlad patted her shoulder as he slipped out behind her. He could sense the storm that was coming and he wasn't about to face it. Danny offered Kagome a quick farewell before following Vlad out. Kagome shut the front door before telling her mother good night and quickly climbing the steps. When she got up to the second floor, she spotted Judai crouched near the steps. "What are you _doing!?"_ she whispered and gestured for him to go to bed, but Judai brushed her off and went back to spying. Rolling her eyes, Kagome joined him.

"You're staying in town now? Do you really think that's best?" Kimiko started.

"I had hoped that it'd be for more than a few days."

Kagome watched the harsh glare that her mother had. She was glad that she hadn't incurred her mother's wrath. Despite being a small woman, Kimiko Takahashi had a wicked temper.

"I don't even care anymore that you left me, Judai. I've come to terms with it. I know that you're a free spirit," Kimiko started. _That_ was putting it lightly. " _Free spirit_ " basically translated to " _commitment issues_ " for this man. At least he wasn't a cheater. "You are still their father so I won't stop you from seeing them. If they want you in their lives, that's up to them. But you aren't stepping _foot_ in mine," Kimiko said.

"Kim," Judai pleaded.

"And if you even _think_ about turning your back on them again, I will hunt you down and make your life _hell._ Do you hear me? You are _not_ hurting my babies anymore."

"I know I've screwed things up. You don't need to rub it in. I saw Koharu and Kohaku before I came here. Neither of them were too pleased to see me. Koharu actually called me a deadbeat. I don't blame him. He was always closer to you. Kagome basically told me that she wants nothing to do with me."

"I hope you don't expect me to feel sorry for you."

Kagome felt Judai smack her foot. She frowned down at him. He was glaring up at her. ' _Traitor,'_ Judai mouthed to her.

' _He's_ the traitor,' Kagome mouthed back.

"I don't expect you to feel sorry for me. I'm not exactly sure what I expected," Judai said and ran his hands through his hair. "I see you're already moving on."

"That's none of your business. It's time for you to leave, Judai," Kimiko said and went to open the front door.

"Alright. I'll go. But before I do," Judai said and frowned deeply. "How well do you know that guy? The one in the suit."

"Why?"

"I got a funny feeling from him. Like something wasn't right," Judai said. Kimiko rolled her eyes. "I'm not being jealous. It's concern for you and the kids. Something about him felt _off_. Not just him, but that boy that I saw Kagome with."

Kagome frowned. What did he have against Danny? She leaned in closer.

"Judai-" Kimiko started.

"You know I've got a sixth sense for these things, Kim. There's something _not right_ about those two. Something _spooky_ ," Judai said.

"Alright. That's enough. Good bye, Judai," Kimiko said and pulled the door open. Judai sighed before walking out the door. Kimiko sighed deeply before shutting and locking the door. "You two better be in your beds when I get upstairs!"

Tripping over each other, Kagome and Judai quickly ran back to their rooms. Kimiko smirked to herself when she heard two doors slam shut.

~:~

"Thanks for inviting me out today, Danny," Kagome said as she walked through the park with Danny at her side. The two teens were eating ice creams cones and enjoying the light, November breeze that had picked up. The sun shined down on them to keep them from feeling too chilled, but not too warm. It was a pleasant way to spend a Saturday.

"I thought that you needed it after last night. I'm glad they found your brother," Danny said.

"Yeah. Me too. This morning at breakfast was probably the most awkward thing ever. Mom was practically suffocating my brother while trying to find the best way to explain her new relationship with Vlad," Kagome said and wiped some vanilla ice cream off her finger.

"Relationship?" Danny parroted.

"Yeah. They've been dating for a month now. Go figure."

"Yeah. Go figure," Danny said with a frown. He still hadn't been able to figure out what Vlad was plotting. He'd even followed the older half-ghost around town one weekend. All he'd gotten out of that was that Vlad bought organic eggs and cat food. "Hey, has your mom told you anything about Vlad?"

"Well, I mean we do talk about this kind of thing a lot. We're pretty comfortable with it. I'm pretty sure that she's told me everything I need to know. She knows to keep it PG," Kagome said with a laugh.

" _Ew,"_ Danny replied with a shiver. "I was just wondering if your mom knew that Vlad kind of has a thing for my mom."

There it was. He'd said it and laid it all out I the open. If Kagome didn't know, hopefully she would warn her mom as soon as possible. That would probably be enough to get Kimiko to leave Vlad. Then, whatever he was planning would be-

"My mom mentioned that. She had been worried about staying with Vlad, but I told her to go for it. It's not like Vlad has made another move on your mom since then. Right?" Kagome answered.

"Well... no. But how did your mom find out?"

"Your mom told my mom and then my mom confronted Vlad about it. He was pretty upfront about it too. He didn't try to lie or brush it off. I thought that was pretty admirable of him," Kagome said and took a bite out of her waffle cone.

Danny frowned deeply. Vlad had confessed? What else had he confessed to? Vlad wouldn't tell anyone that he was half-ghost. No way. He wasn't that crazy. "Kagome, you need to warn your mom about Vlad," Danny urged. Kagome raised a brow at Danny. "I know he seems nice now, but he's really a creep."

"A creep? What did he do?"

"...Uh. Well... I can't actually...tell you. But just know that it was _really_ bad," Danny said.

"Uh-huh. Sure thing, Danny," Kagome said with a laugh.

"I'm serious! He's a total creep! I can't tell you exactly what he did, but you have to believe me," Danny stressed.

"And why can't you tell me, Danny?" Kagome asked and shot Danny an expectant look.

"It's personal," Danny fired back. Kagome rolled her eyes and walked ahead. "Kagome, wait!"

"Danny, I wouldn't expect you to notice it, but my mom's been really happy this past month. Compared to how torn up she was a few months ago, seeing her now is a refreshing change," Kagome said.

"But-"

"If you would tell me what has you so worried about my mother's love life, then I'd hear you out. But, it's "personal"," Kagome repeated with air quotes.

Danny frowned deeply. "I'm just trying to help."

"I appreciate it, Danny. I _think_ ," Kagome responded. "But just leave it alone. Okay?" Danny sighed. This would be so much easier if she knew...

~:~

Vlad signed his signature with a flourish before moving the paper to the pile of "completed" work. Picking up another paper, Vlad frowned down at it. The police force was requesting an increase in funds in order to implement a new round of security procedures during the holidays. Vlad sighed. He was about to put the paper in the already large pile of "to deal with later" work. Picking up another file, Vlad gripped his pen. Unfortunately, the pen was shot out of his hand by a green ecto-blast. " _Ow!"_ Vlad exclaimed. When he spotted that his desk and suit were now covered in black ink, Vlad growled. "Butter biscuits," he cursed and looked up with a deep frown. "What do _you_ want, Daniel? Can't you see that I'm busy?"

Danny Phantom glared down at Vlad with his neon green eyes glowing in irritation. "Look, Vlad. I don't know what you're up to, but I'm warning you. _Back. Off."_

Vlad frowned in confusion. " _What_ are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb! I don't know what you're planning with Kagome's mom, but you can forget about it. Got it?" Danny threatened.

Vlad rolled his eyes and tossed the soiled papers into the trash. He grabbed another pen and an unmarked file before refocusing on his work. "I don't believe that my personal life is any of _your_ business, Daniel."

"It is when you threaten my friend's mom!" Danny argued back.

"I have not _threatened_ her!" Vlad shouted back. "I don't have time for this. I have to get this work done- work that _you_ set me back on with that little stunt of yours- all before tonight."

"I don't care. If you think I'm going to stand back and let you hurt Kagome and her family, then you've got another-"

"Is _that_ what this is about?" Vlad interrupted with a knowing smirk. "Daniel, I assure you that while it is none of your business I am being one hundred percent genuine with Kimiko. She is an amazing woman and I've been completely upfront with her."

"Oh _really?"_ Danny asked with his arms folded over his chest and a brow raised.

"Obviously, I've kept some things to myself," Vlad answered defensively.

"That's a great start to a relationship. _Ew,"_ Danny shuttered. Vlad frowned and glared at Danny. "With a big, fat _lie._ I wonder what she would think of you if she found out the truth about you?"

Vlad's gaze narrowed. "Are you threatening me, dear boy?" Vlad asked and slowly stood. Danny glared back. "I see no reason to take you on. It's your word against mine, Daniel. Who would believe _you?"_

Danny frowned deeply. "I don't believe you, Vlad. There's _no way_ your serious about this. You're probably just trying to get close to her so you can figure out if she's a threat or something."

Vlad nearly laughed. Daniel was much more astute than he lead on. But Vlad wasn't going to tell him that. "I was just about to say the same for you, Daniel."

"W-what?"

Vlad walked around his desk with his hands folded behind his back. "Oh don't play coy. It's quite obvious that you're only pretending to be interested in Kagome to look out for your own well-being. Well, it's what _I_ would do if I were in your position," Vlad explained with a cruel grin.

"I'm _nothing_ like you," Danny promised with a heated glare.

"Really, Daniel? So you expect me to believe that you're concerned for whatever evil scheme I'm plotting? I _have_ none, dear boy. Believe it or not, Daniel. My life doesn't revolve around _you,"_ Vlad glared.

Danny continued to glare for a few more seconds before flying in close to Vlad's face. "Stay _away_ from them," he threatened before flying out of Vlad's office.

Vlad watched the boy go with a smirk. Vlad sat back in his leather chair with a pensive expression on his face. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but Daniel had a point. His relationship with Kimiko was based on a lie. How long could he keep up the farce? She was such an intelligent woman. She'd be able to figure him out soon enough. What would she think of him then?

He was never able to admit the truth to Maddie. She absolutely loathes ghosts. But Kimiko didn't share those feelings. Kimiko found them to be interesting. Kimiko viewed ghosts as if they were people too. Would she be able to accept him as he was? He hoped that she would.

He wanted to tell her the truth. But he couldn't bear to lose her now. Being with Kimiko was... almost indescribable. It was like an intimidating admiration. Being around her was comparable to a moth being drawn in to a flame. And yet, he could feel every fiber of his being telling him to run for the hills. She was everything that he was looking for in a companion. If she couldn't accept him, then there was no hope for him at all.

~:~

Placing his books in his locker, Danny grabbed the last books that he would need after lunch. He wasn't in the mood to come back for the books later. Idly, Danny counted down the days until Thanksgiving break. Danny had just taken his Algebra book out of his locker when the metal door was suddenly slammed in front of him. Great. Now he had to deal with Dash... Since when did Dash wear nail polish?

"What part of _leave it alone_ didn't you get?" Kagome asked with an irritated expression.

"What are you talking about?" Danny asked as he shot Kagome a startled look.

Kagome folded her arms angrily. "Vlad came over for dinner last night. He commended you for how much you care about my mom and family. You told him to _stay away_ from my mother? _Danny_!" Kagome exclaimed with an incredulous stare.

Luckily, they were alone in the hallway. Danny slipped his bag onto his back while sighing. Leave it to Vlad to blab... "Kagome, I'm telling you that Vlad is a major creep. I can't tell you all that he's done, but even if I did you wouldn't believe me anyways. He's _not_ a nice guy."

"As far as I've seen, he's been nothing but kind to my mother. She's finally happy again, Danny. Why are you trying to ruin that?" Kagome asked.

"Because he's no good for her! Literally _anybody else_ would be better! Even your dad would be better than Vlad," Danny said. He got the feeling that that was the wrong thing to say. At Kagome's defensive glare, Danny tried to apologize. "I'm sorry, Kagome. That was a stupid thing to say."

"What's going on with you? It's like you have a personal vendetta against Vlad," Kagome said.

She wasn't wrong. Danny sighed deeply. "Something like that. I can't go too into it-"

"Let me guess. It's _personal_. Danny, I don't have a problem with you not wanting to share every insignificant detail about your life with me. It's your business. But do me a favor and stay _out_ of my mother's. Okay?" Kagome said asked.

He wanted to argue about this some more, but what could he say? Danny sighed. "Alright. I guess I was a little out of line," Danny said and rubbed the back of his neck.

"A _little?"_

Danny shot Kagome a look. "If it makes you feel better, you're now Judai's favorite person. He totally agrees with you despite not knowing Vlad for nearly as long as you have," Kagome said and started to walk towards the cafeteria.

Danny moved to walk by her side while saying, "Yeah. I've only known him for a few years, but the guy makes an impression."

Kagome pursed her lips before asking, "What _kind_ of impression? I know you said that you can't tell me the details, but if it were anything too bad you would tell me. Right? Vlad's not secretly an axe murderer or a convicted felon?"

Danny chuckled. "He's pretty bad, but not _that_ bad."

Kagome frowned slightly. "My dad said something before he left last night. He said that Vlad gave him this bad feeling. Like he had this spooky feeling to him."

Danny tried to keep his composure. Who would have thought that Kagome's dad of all people would have hit the nail on the head? Danny fixed his face to appear disbelieving.

Spotting his expression, Kagome said, "I _know._ Would you believe me if I said he got the same feeling from you too? Crazy... But he's always been superstitious. I think it's why he's always on the go. But whatever."

"He called me spooky?" Danny repeated. He swallowed.

"Don't worry about it, Danny. I know you a lot better than he does and I don't think you're spooky," Kagome replied with a bright smile.

Danny tried to return the smile but it ended up looking unenthusiastic. "Hey, Kagome. Can I ask you something? How much do you know about ghosts?"

"Ghosts? Not much. My mom's told me a little about them. Why?"

"Your mom, huh?" Danny asked. Trying to be as casual as possible, Danny went on, "My parents are like that. But they try not to force ghost hunting on me. They wouldn't give me an ecto-gun to go to school with or a book about ghost wards. You know?"

Kagome frowned. "A book?" she repeated.

"Yeah. Did...did your mom give you a book?" Danny asked with a curious expression. He tried to act casually, but the suspicious look that Kagome was giving him was unnerving. "Kagome?"

"My mom did give me a book. I had it in the back of my locker when I went to cheerleading practice one day. But when I went to get the book after practice, it was like someone had just shoved it in at the last second. It fell out as soon as I opened my locker," Kagome said with her arms folded over her chest.

Danny's eyes widened. " _What_? You think _I_ was in your locker? You're joking. Right?"

"I didn't say that. I wasn't accusing you of anything. I was just telling you what happened. It was probably a ghost or something," Kagome replied.

She _had_ to be messing with him now. Did she know? There's no way. Right? Did something in that book actually work? Had she used it on him without him knowing? Was _that_ what that shock was when he kissed her!? "Blood blossom-flavored lip gloss," Danny whispered with wide eyes.

"What?" Kagome asked him with a strange look.

Danny narrowed his gaze at her. "Your mom gave you that book. Why would she do that? Are you secretly some kind of ghost hunter or something? I thought your mom didn't hunt ghosts. Or were you just lying to me?" Danny asked, his suspicions rising.

"Hold on a second. Why does it sound like you're accusing me of something?" Kagome asked in a tone that would make normal people back down and forget about their argument.

Danny was far from normal, however. "That depends. _Have_ you done something wrong?"

"No. Have _you_ done something wrong, Danny?" Kagome fired back with a scoff.

" _Me_? I haven't done anything. But I'm not the one hiding my secret passion for ghost hunting," Danny said in a casual tone.

Kagome rolled her eyes. "Why is it such a big deal to you? First, Sam freaks out on me because of ghost hunting and now you?"

"It's a big deal when you look me in the face and lie to me. I thought I knew you better than that," Danny said. "But, I was obviously wrong."

Kagome frowned deeply before nodding her in acceptance. "I was about to say the same thing," Kagome replied. "My mom gave me the book a few weeks ago when I told her that a ghost had been following me around. I felt like I was being watched and she let me find something that I could use for protection."

"There was a ghost stalking you?" Danny asked. His anger immediately vanished. He hadn't known this! When had the ghosts returned? Why was a ghost following Kagome?

"That's what I thought," Kagome replied. "But for whatever reason, you assumed that I was some sort of ghost hunter. I don't know why that would matter to you. Even if I wanted to hunt ghosts, I don't know why I have to have _your_ permission to do so."

"Wait. I didn't say that you have to have my-" Danny started, but Kagome interrupted him.

"No. But you basically accused me of lying to you about something that I'm not even doing. But it's whatever. Right? It's nice to know that I'm not allowed to keep things from you but you can keep all the secrets you want," Kagome said and adjusted the straps of her backpack. "I liked being your friend because you were so different from other boys. You were so nice and funny and just so _sweet._ But I don't even recognize you right now."

"I'm sorry. I was just feeling weird. It's hard to explain. Things have been really... _weird_ lately," Danny offered lamely.

"Whatever, Danny. I gotta go," Kagome replied and walked around him.

"Wait! Kagome!" Danny shouted after her, but she only walked away at a faster pace. Danny watched her go before slumping with a sigh. "Way to go, Fenton..."

~:~

Moi-Moi: Don't forget to leave a review! :D


	16. Nothing Stays Hidden Forever

Honestly, Sam had been feeling pretty good lately. If it weren't completely against everything gothic that she stood for, Sam might have actually skipped to Casper High with a smile on her face. She'd just have to save her skipping for the Christmas time. Smiling to herself, Sam walked with Danny on her left and Tucker on his other side. "So, what's the plans for this weekend, guys?" Sam asked with a bright smile.

"I don't know. I'm not really in the mood to do anything," Danny replied.

Sam felt her mood dampen slightly. Danny had been in a funk lately without any sign that he was going to get better. Sam couldn't understand why he couldn't see how great things were. Danny hadn't spoken to Kagome in _days._ Things were finally back to normal. More importantly, they didn't have to worry about Danny opening himself up to a sneak attack from the girl.

"Kagome still won't talk to you. Huh?" Tucker inferred with a frown.

"No. I don't blame her. I said some pretty bad things to her," Danny replied.

"You still haven't told us what you said, dude," Tucker reminded him.

"What difference does it make? At least Danny doesn't have to always be watching his back. He knows that _we_ wouldn't use some anti-ghost weapon against him," Sam dismissed.

Danny sighed before walking on. Sam meant well. He knew that much. He had wanted to blame Sam for putting the idea that Kagome was secretly and evil ghost hunter in his head, but he couldn't bring himself to alienate _another_ friend. It wasn't her fault that he was such a terrible friend to Kagome. On the bright (but still rather dim) side, at least Kagome had stopped glaring at him whenever she saw him in public. Now, she only avoided acknowledging him altogether. That was...better. Right?

Once they had entered the halls of Casper High, the group made their way to Danny's locker first. Danny could hear Sam talking about this new band she found and how much their music "spoke" to her. His lack of response made it seem like he wasn't interested. But truthfully, he just wasn't up for conversation.

" _Hey, Fen-turd!"_

Danny hung his head with a loud sigh/groan escaping him. He could hear Dash chuckling as the jock approached. Before Danny could even reply to the boy, he was risen off the floor and forcibly shoved against his locker. Tucker and Sam had backed away with astonished and irritated expressions. From where he was being pressed uncomfortably against the lockers, Danny could see Dash smirking up at him cruelly. "What's your problem _this_ time, Dash?" Danny exclaimed. Honestly, he wasn't in the mood for this!

"Guess what, Fenton. Your get-out-of-wailing free card just expired," Dash said and pushed Danny into the locker again.

The hit should have hurt. It _would_ have hurt anyone else. But Danny only felt his annoyance building. He'd taken less blows from his enemies before firing back at _them._ "What are you talking about?" Danny asked with a glare. His patience had been at an all time low lately. It probably wouldn't be best to give Dash a taste of his own medicine in the middle of a semi-crowded hallway.

" _Duh._ Isn't it obvious? Kagome dumped you like a rotten egg. Which means that I don't have to hold back anymore," Dash explained.

"D-dumped?" Danny parroted with a slight blush. Dash didn't really think that he and Kagome had been _dating._ Right? They were just friends!

"Yeah. _Dumped._ That's what I said. Geez. You're pretty slow aren't you?" Dash asked while shooting Danny an incredulous look. What had Kagome _seen_ in this loser?

"We weren't-"

"Don't try to weasel your way out of _this_ one, Fen- _tina_. This has been coming for a long time," Dash interrupted and reared back his right fist. Danny shut his eyes and tensed.

"Gentlemen, is there a _problem_ here?"

Both Danny and Dash froze. With wide eyes, they both turned to see Mr. Lancer watching them through a narrowed gaze. His arms were folded over his chest and his fingers were tapping against his slim bicep. Dash immediately pulled away from Danny and left the boy to fall onto the floor in a heap. "No problem at all, Lancer," Dash replied.

"That's _Mr._ Lancer, Mr. Baxter. It would be in your best interest not to forget that," Mr. Lancer corrected. Mr. Lancer watched Danny pull himself up from the floor before dusting off his pants with a frown. "Now, Mr. Baxter, you know that the school has a strict " _no fighting_ " policy."

Rather than say anything, Dash frowned at the older man. _Man._ Where had Lancer even _come_ from!? He'd been itching to let out some steam since yesterday. His sucky mood had nothing to do with Fenton really... Well, it had a _little_ to do with him. It was all Fenton's fault why Kagome had turned him down _again_ yesterday. Everyone in school knew that she had dumped the loser, but she had still said no to Dash. What sense did _that_ make!? She was single. He was single for once. It only made sense that they went out.

"Do I make myself clear, Mr. Baxter?" Dash heard Mr. Lancer finish. He hadn't heard a word the man had said to him. Offering a noncommittal grunt and a subtle roll of his eyes, Dash turned to leave.

Mr. Lancer felt his hackles rise. _Teenagers._ "Mr. Baxter, I don't think I appreciate your disrespectful behavior. See me after school for detention," Mr. Lancer said.

" _What!?"_ Dash responded, now completely listening to the teacher. With a stunned expression, Dash faced the teacher and said, "You can't do that! I can't stay here. I have an actual life! Can't you take Fenton instead?"

"Gee, _thanks_ a lot, Dash," Danny grumbled. Dash shot Danny an irritated look that Danny returned.

"That's _final_ , Mr. Baxter. Now, off to class the both of you. And don't let me catch you dilly dallying," Mr. Lancer said and walked away. He could hear Mr. Baxter groan loudly before he stomped unhappily down the hall. Turning the corner, Mr. Lancer wasn't surprised to see Ms. Takahashi clutching her pink binder to her chest as she worried her bottom lip. "Thank you, Ms. Takahashi. More students should be willing to speak up and get a teacher's help when they see a fellow student in trouble."

"Uh... Sure thing, Mr. Lancer," she replied in a small voice.

Mr. Lancer examined the girl for a few seconds before smiling softly. "Ms. Takahashi, I may not be a student, but I am well aware of what goes on with the students in this school."

"Mr. Lancer?" she replied with a raised brow.

"Normally, I tell my students that adolescence is more than just finding a significant other. You all have school work and your futures to focus on. While I'm sure that you have your head on straight, I am concerned for Mr. Fenton. I must admit that he was better off with you," Mr. Lancer said. He watched the girl blush fiercely before hanging her head with a noise of embarrassment. Chuckling softly, Mr. Lancer said, "But, what do I know? I'm not exactly hip to you young kids anymore."

Mr. Lancer walked away after that. Honestly, he doubted that he would ever understand how teenagers worked. They had a bad habit of unnecessarily complicating matters. Although he had been one once upon a time, he'd never been _this_ complicated. Maybe it was just the times? Then again, he hadn't fit into the cookie-cutter mold of what a teenager should be like anyways.

Kagome watched the older man walk away before peeking around the corner again. She saw Danny talking to Sam and Tucker while rubbing his shoulder with a grimace. Sighing to herself, Kagome turned to head to class.

~:~

Sam was having a hard time remembering who was the goth between her and Danny. Frowning deeply, Sam's violet eyes glanced at Tucker but the boy was busy tapping away at his PDA. Focusing on Danny again, Sam nearly sighed. "Danny, aren't you going to eat?" she asked him and gestured to his lunch tray.

"Not hungry."

Sam nearly groaned. "Danny, we can't help you if you won't talk to us. At least tell us what Kagome said that has you so bummed," Sam said, finally losing her patience.

"Sam is right, dude. We just want to help," Tucker inputted, finally putting away his PDA.

Danny sighed before rubbing his face with his hands. "She was mad with me for warning Vlad to stay away from her mom."

"Well that's stupid. She doesn't even know the truth about Vlad," Sam dismissed.

"I want to tell her the truth, but it's kind of hard to tell her without having to explain how I know all this stuff. Or worse, what if Vlad spills my secret? It doesn't really matter anyways. That's not why she's mad with me," Danny said. Sam and Tucker exchanged a look. "I brought up ghost hunting and the book you found, Sam. I was practically accusing her! And she wasn't even using the book to hunt ghosts."

"What? Are you _sure?"_ Sam questioned with a frown. "Maybe she's trying to throw you off."

"Sam, she got the book from her mom so she could find something to use for protection from ghosts," Danny said and shot Sam a look. "I don't know how I missed it, but there's been a ghost following her. She got freaked out."

Sam's eyes widened. "She... She said that a ghost was following her?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. I don't even remember my ghost sense going off. Maybe they were following her when I wasn't around?" Danny suggested.

"Probably. What would a ghost want with Kagome anyway?" Tucker asked.

Sam felt her heart rate pick up. Kagome had thought that _Sam_ was a ghost. Oh no. What would she tell Danny? ' _Oh. That wasn't a ghost. That was me stalking her to try to find out what she was hiding. Oh! I also broke into her locker. Looks like it was for nothing, huh?'_ It didn't take a genius to realize how _smoothly_ that talk would go...

"I kind of wished that you hadn't found that book, Sam," Danny mused and frowned at his pizza.

"Yeah... Me too," Sam said with a frown.

"Maybe it wouldn't hurt to look into which ghost is following Kagome? We could head into the ghost zone after school and ask around," Tucker suggested. Sam's eyes widened fearfully.

Danny sat up with a nod. "Yeah. That's a good idea, Tuck. She may not be talking to me, but I can't just sit back and do nothing when she's in danger," Danny replied.

Sam could feel the worry and a (little) guilt clawing at her insides. They couldn't go looking for a ghost that didn't exist. She had been so _sure_ that Kagome had been hiding something. But, it was probably just her jealousy getting out of hand. Now, Danny was always frowning and beating himself up over something that wasn't even his fault. Sam bit her lip. Maybe there was something she could do?

"Sam?" Danny asked when he saw Sam suddenly stand up from their table.

"I have to do something. I'll be back," Sam said before quickly dashing away.

Danny and Tucker exchanged a look. Danny's gaze narrowed at Sam's back. "Is it just me, or has Sam been disappearing a lot?"

"I guess. I never really asked about it. I figured that it was girl stuff," Tucker shrugged and went back to his burger.

Danny frowned. "I'll be right back," he said and stood. Tucker watched Danny go with a raised brow. What was up with those two?

Kagome didn't usually eat lunch in the cafeteria. Sam decided to check outside. Today was one of the rare days in fall when the sun was shining bright enough to allow you to sit outside in the chilly air and not freeze over. Sam froze up when she spotted Kagome sitting under a tree with an opened book in one hand and a half-eaten apple in the other. Sighing once, Sam approached the girl. "Hey, Kagome."

Glancing up from her book, Kagome raised a brow at Sam. "Yes, Sam? Is there something you need?"

"I need to talk to you about Danny."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "I already told you how I felt about Danny, Sam. I don't have anything else to say to you."

"It's not about that," Sam dismissed. She sighed loudly. "Look, I want to apologize. Okay?" Sam said while folding her arms over her chest and looking up at the leaves on the tree. This was harder than she thought it would be...

"You're apologizing on Danny's behalf? Thanks, but no thanks, Sam. While I appreciate the effort, it's unnecessary. I'm not mad with Danny anymore," Kagome said as she marked the page in her novel and closed the book.

"You're not? That's great!" Sam replied with a smile. Mission accomplished! She just had to get Kagome to talk to Danny again.

Kagome packed up her finished lunch before standing. "I'm not mad with him. I'm just disappointed," Kagome clarified.

Sam slumped slightly. "Well, don't be! Danny's a great guy. What happened... It wasn't his fault. It was mine," Sam said.

"You didn't exactly force him to say the things he did," Kagome said and attempted to walk around Sam.

Sam quickly gripped Kagome's arm and held her back. "You _have_ to listen to me. I... I'm the ghost," Sam admitted. Kagome shot Sam a questioning look. "There wasn't really a ghost following you. It was me. I was following you around like a _creep_ because I was _so_ sure that you were hiding something. But I was just jealous. I'm sorry."

Kagome pulled her arm out of Sam's grasp with a deep frown. "You were following me? Who _does_ that?"

"I'm _sorry_ okay? I'm sorry I stalked you. I'm sorry I accused you of trying to hurt Danny. I'm sorry I broke into your locker! I'm _sorry_ , Kagome," Sam said with a troubled expression.

"You broke into my locker?" Kagome repeated in a dry tone and stare.

"It was all me. It was all my fault. Just... Don't be mad at Danny. It's not his fault. I got into his head," Sam explained.

Kagome stared evenly at Sam for some time before sighing and shaking her head. "Honestly, Sam. I don't know what to think."

"You can hate me. Okay? I'm okay with that. Just don't hate Danny. I didn't want to accept it, but he's actually miserable without you around," Sam said.

Kagome opened and closed her mouth several times before sighing. "Thank you for telling me the truth, Sam. I'm gonna go."

"Wait. What about Danny?" Sam asked and tried to reach out for Kagome again. This time, her fingers missed and swiped air. Sam groaned loudly when Kagome didn't respond. " _Great._ Just _perfect."_

"I'll say."

Sam froze. Ghost powers. Danny has _ghost_ powers. _Shoot._ Turning slowly, Sam squinted her eyes and tensed. Danny was standing next to the trunk of the tree in his ghostly form with his arms folded over his chest and a deep frown in his face. "How... How long have you been there?"

"I heard all of it," Danny answered. "Sam, how _could_ you? You _broke_ into her _locker?_ What were you _thinking!?"_

"I was thinking about _you_!" Sam fired back. Thankfully, they were alone out here. They could get as loud as they wanted. Sam hadn't been able to really get the fires of her anger going when she was speaking to Kagome. The girl had been so calm and rational while Sam apologized. But it was much easier to get fired up when Danny was already raising his voice at her.

"Are you sure about that?" Danny questioned skeptically.

" _Yes!_ I _was!_ You were always around her and I had a feeling. And I knew you wouldn't listen to me unless I had proof. So, I got some. Why are you getting mad at me when I was just looking out for you?" Sam argued back. When Danny rolled his neon green eyes, Sam went on, "Her mom's a _competent_ ghost hunter, Danny. Is it so bad that I was worried for you? You were too busy falling for her to realize that she could have been setting you up!"

"But she _wasn't_ , Sam!" Danny stressed.

Sam's hands clenched tightly. She tried to count down from ten while taking a few, deep breaths. "I was wrong. I admit it. But I already apologized, Danny. What do you want from me?" Sam huffed.

"There's nothing you can do, Sam. You've done enough," Danny said before taking to the skies. Sam watched him go before releasing a loud noise of frustration.

~:~

Sam nearly punched something. It wasn't bad enough that Danny _still_ wasn't talking to Kagome (what was he _waiting_ for!?). But now he wasn't talking her either! Kagome had been the one she'd stalked and accused. But not even Kagome was treating her as badly as Danny was. He was refraining from talking to her while _still_ shooting her dirty looks. Sam wanted to call Danny immature, but she _did_ kind of deserve it.

"What does he want from me, Tucker? I've apologized to him and Kagome at least a hundred times _each._ I've tried talking to him, but he won't even look at me without glaring. Even _Kagome_ is being nicer to me and she has more reason to hate me than anyone!" Sam griped. She was sitting across from Tucker in their booth at the Nasty Burger. Danny had turned down the offer to join them for food after school. Sam couldn't help but think that it was due to her being here.

"I don't think he wants anything, Sam. I think you should just let him cool off a little," Tucker suggested.

Sam sighed and hung her head. "Has he tried talking to Kagome?"

"No. I don't know what he's waiting for. I think he's nervous about talking to her again," Tucker said.

"That's stupid," Sam replied. Tucker shrugged in response. Sam stabbed at a tomato on her salad with a small frown. She really needed to do something about this. She _had_ to fix this. Danny was her best friend. She couldn't lose him over something so stupid. Even if he never saw her as more than a friend... "Tucker, I've got to help them out."

"What do you mean?" Tucker asked as he paused in shoving his triple cheeseburger into his mouth.

Sam wrinkled her nose slightly before saying, "If I can get them to at least talk to each other again, maybe that will fix everything. Danny will be talking to Kagome again and maybe he won't be mad with me anymore."

"I...guess it could work," Tucker said with an unsure shrug.

"It's worth a shot. I've just got to get them to meet up and then they can talk it out. Quick, give me your phone," Sam said and stuck out her hand.

"What are you going to do?" Tucker asked as he handed over his phone.

"I'm texting Kagome to ask her to meet you at the park," Sam said and started tapping away at the keypad on Tucker's phone. "Now, I'll text Danny the same thing."

"You're going to make them meet at the park? How do you know they'll stick around?" Tucker asked.

"I'll tie them to a tree if I have to. _Shoot._ Danny's bailing," Sam said with a frown. "I'll tell him there's a ghost attacking."

"There's a ghost attacking?"

Sam and Tucker looked up in time to see Valerie watching them with wide eyes. Sam rolled her eyes while Tucker laughed nervously. "Don't worry about it, Valerie. There's no ghost," Sam said before returning to the phone. " _Done._ He's on his way. I've got to go, Tuck. Wished me luck," Sam said before getting up and quickly leaving the restaurant. Valerie raised a brow in question. Tucker shrugged at her once with a crooked grin.

Leaving Tucker alone, Valerie walked out of the restaurant and pulled her ecto-energy detector out of her backpack. The little device looked like a touchscreen phone with a red and black skin. The screen showed a bright green grid with a sonar pinging out from around her position. While Sam Manson may not be the best source for ghostly activity, it wouldn't hurt to check. There had only been one ghost attack in the past few months and she'd missed it. _One!_ That kind of thing was unheard of in Amity Park. Valerie had been waiting impatiently for any sign that the ghosts had returned. She knew that they would eventually. It was only a matter of time.

" _Gotcha,"_ Valerie said as she spotted a green blip moving towards the east. Ducking in between the alley next to the Nasty Burger, Valerie quickly changed into her ghost hunting gear. "I'm coming for you, spook," she said as she flew off towards the blip.

~:~

Kagome released a breath as she looked down at her phone. ' _4:23'_ Where was Tucker? He'd texted her randomly asking to meet with her at the park almost half an hour ago. She wasn't sure what to expect. Was he going to try to get her to talk to Danny like Sam had? There was no point. She'd stubbornly snubbed him for so long that Danny didn't want anything to do with her. He'd long since stopped trying to get in contact with her.

Maybe she was giving up too soon? He'd already filled her voicemail, sent dozens of texts, and even emailed her. She had to at least try. Nothing was going to be fixed by just sitting back quietly. And if Danny really didn't want anything to do with her, then she'd accept his decision.

Kagome had been about to text Tucker to let him know that she was going home when she heard the sounds of a jet engine. Looking up, Kagome spotted someone in a red suit flying overhead on a sled. She frowned. What were they called again? The Red...Hunter? Huntress? It was supposed to be a female ghost hunter. But what was she doing here? She was flying over the denser part of the forest as though she were looking for something. Was there a ghost around?

"Kagome!"

Turning around, Kagome was surprised to see Sam jogging towards her. "Sam? What are you doing here? Where's Tucker?"

"Don't worry about him. I texted you from his phone. I'm sorry I lied again, but I only did it to help you," Sam said. Kagome shot her a dry stare. "Just listen! I texted Danny and he's on his way. I figured that if you two were forced to meet, then you'd have to work out your problems."

"Well, we can't stay here. I think there's a ghost nearby. I saw the Red Huntress flying around," Kagome said and pointed to where she had seen the Red Huntress fly off.

Sam's eyes widened fearfully. "Oh no... I have to find Danny! He needs help," Sam said and ran into the forest.

"Sam! Wait!" Kagome called out after her. What was she thinking!? You don't run _towards_ a ghost fight. But she had said that Danny was coming here. Realization dawning, Kagome quickly pulled out her phone and dialed Danny's number.

" _The number you are trying to reach is unavailable. To leave a message-"_

"Shoot!" Kagome shouted. Sparing the forest a wary glance, she quickly dashed inside. Sam was nowhere to be seen. In fact, Kagome couldn't even see any small, park animals. Maybe the fight had scared them off? Stepping over a tree branch, Kagome looked around. She had no idea where she was going. She couldn't afford to get lost now. Maybe she should call her mom to come-

 _BOOM._

Kagome froze up. The fight had _definitely_ started. That explosion came from her right. ' _Don't go towards explosions. Run the other way!'_ she shouted at herself while running towards the sound. ' _I'm going to regret this later.'_

While running, Kagome tried Danny's cell again. He still wasn't picking up. She tried her mother next. When that didn't work, she tried her house phone. "Why is _no one_ answering!?" she hissed silently. Kagome was in the middle of dialing Danny again when she heard a boy's pained shout. Her head snapped up. It sounded like Danny!

Kagome was startled by the sight of Danny Phantom crashing into a tree on her right. Moving quickly, she ducked behind another tree and peered out at him. Despite hitting the tree with enough force to crack the trunk, Phantom was already pulling himself onto his feet. He was glaring up at something.

"Say goodbye, spook."

Poking her head out further, Kagome spotted the Red Huntress flying overhead on her sled. She had a gun on her wrist pointed at Phantom. The little gun made a whirring noise as it sparked wildly. Fingers flying over the screen of her phone, Kagome sent Danny a quick, warning text message. Her heart stopped when she heard Danny's phone chime from nearby.

"Geez. What's that? The third time now? Who's calling you _this_ much?" the Red Huntress asked.

Kagome frowned. Talk about déja vu. With a narrowed gaze, Kagome called Danny again. Like clockwork, she heard Danny's ringtone. The Huntress scoffed while Phantom held up a finger, silently asking her to wait on him. He pulled a _very_ familiar cell phone off his waist before examining the screen. His eyes widened.

"Are you going to get that?" the Red Huntress asked rhetorically.

"Uh..." Phantom replied unintelligently before chuckling sheepishly.

"Doesn't matter. I'm putting an end to you _now_ , ghost," Huntress snarled before firing. Phantom released a pained cry as the blast hit him directly in the chest and sent him sprawling backwards. Kagome's eyes widened in shock. "I've got something new for you, ghost. Well, not _new._ It's pretty old school," Huntress said before brandishing a new gun. It was a simple, silver pistol. But when the Huntress fired it, instead of a bullet, a small red dart flew out.

Kagome frowned. What was that supposed to-Kagome nearly tripped over her herself when she heard Phantom scream loudly in pure agony. His screams had startled her. She was sure that everyone in the park could hear him screaming. What was _wrong_ with him!?

"You like it, ghost? I found out about this plant that was used to repel ghosts in the 1600s. Ever heard of blood blossoms? You wouldn't believe how hard it was to get just the extracts. But it was worth it," the Huntress said.

Kagome gasped. Blood blossoms had been in the book her mother had given her. They were supposed to be one of the most effective methods of vanquishing a ghost. Staring fearfully at Phantom's twitching and glowing-red form, Kagome could see why. The boy looked to be in complete torture. She may not be on friendly terms with any ghosts, but that didn't mean that she believed that they deserved such cruel treatment. What the Huntress was doing was inhumane! Was _this_ who was protecting the town? Kagome frowned deeply.

 _Pain._ Danny couldn't think of anything else. His first run in with the plant had been painful, but it was _nothing_ compared to this. He could feel the burning sensations coursing through his body, setting him on fire from the inside out. It felt like acid moving through his veins. He tried summoning up some of his ice powers to cool himself down, but it hurt to much to try to use his powers. Was he crying?

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

Danny heard Valerie speaking but he couldn't focus on what she was saying. The pain was becoming unbearable. Surely, he'd pass out before Valerie could waste him.

"What's the _matter_ with you!? Can't you see you're hurting him!?"

Kagome? Cracking an eye open, Danny could barely see through the tears in his eyes. Blinking rapidly to clear his vision, Danny was finally able to make her out. It _was_ her. Why was she here? How long had she been here? She had to get out before she got hurt!

"Good! Why don't you just get out of the way? I've got a job to finish," Huntress said before taking aim.

Danny tried his best to take in enough air to speak. He had to warn Kagome. Both he and Valerie were shocked into silence when she used her body to shield him. "You act like you're protecting the town, but you're nothing more than a _monster_. This is torture!" Kagome shouted angrily.

" _Move_! I won't tell you again!" Valerie shouted.

" _No!_ " Kagome shouted back with a fierce glare.

With a few wheezes escaping him, Danny tried to speak. Unfortunately, he was only able to release a soft croak. He tried to pat her arm. She turned her gaze onto him, her eyes softening sympathetically. He tried patting her arm urgently. "It's okay. I won't let her hurt you," he heard her whisper. No! She was misunderstanding him!

"You want to defend a _ghost_? I didn't think you'd be one of those _morons_ crushing on Phantom. Doesn't matter. I'm doing this," Valerie said and charged her weapon.

Danny tried to push her away, but his muscles were barely working. Finally getting enough air, Danny was able to squeak out a, " _Run."_

"I won't leave you to suffer. I'm not your enemy. No matter what anyone says," Kagome said. What was she talking about!? He was trying to get her out of here! Danny watched as Kagome glared at Valerie while muttering softly to herself. He couldn't understand what she was saying. It sounded like a made up language to his ears. " _Phasmatos de strutos avox addellum,"_ Danny could hear her mumbling. With confused eyes, Danny stared at her and then Valerie.

"Hey! What's happening!?" Valerie shouted just as her jet sped started sputtering. The sled whirred loudly before flying up into the air. Danny watched with wide eyes as Valerie haphazardly flew away from them while screaming loudly in fright. What?

"Okay. Now what?" Danny heard Kagome mutter to herself as she faced him. Still twitching slightly, Danny watched her pull the dart out of his shoulder before staring down at him in worry. He stared up at her. "I don't know what to do. I don't know how to help you," she said before resting her hand on his chest. Immediately, Danny screamed again as he felt a familiar shock to his system. "I'm sorry!" Kagome shouted frightfully and jerked her hand away from him. "I'm so sorry. I'm not doing it on purpose. I swear."

Danny squeezed his eyes shut. He was a half-ghost. He'd seen some pretty crazy and down right strange things in the past two years of his life. But he had _no_ idea what to make of this.

"I want to help you, but I don't know how. You have to tell me how I can help you," she said to him.

"Can't. It... It's _in_ me," Danny said. The pain was starting to fade. Thank God. The seared feeling in his skin remained, but at least the flames were dimming. Danny just felt tired. No. More than that. He was _exhausted._

"Don't fall asleep now! She might come back. I can stay with you until you're strong enough to move," Kagome offered. She stared down at the ghost boy with a worried gaze. Her eyes glared at his waist. He actually had a cellphone. What did a ghost need with a cellphone? And where did he get one? Doing her best not to startle him, Kagome unclipped the phone from his suit before flipping it open.

 **One missed call from: Sam**

 **Three missed calls from: Kagome**

 **One unread message from: Kagome**

With a suspicious gaze, Kagome stared down at the ghost laying at her knees. His face was twisted in pain, but he wasn't speaking. "Danny?" she called out to him. Tiredly, he cracked his eyes open. Kagome's eyes widened. A familiar pair of baby blue eyes stared up at her. Phantom groaned just before a white ring encased his middle. The ring separated into two rings that tried to move up and down his body. Phantom seemed to be struggling with something. He was gritting his teeth while he writhed on the grass. The rings stopped moving, but Kagome could see the change in his clothes. Kagome touched the edge of the white tee shirt. Suddenly, Phantom gasped loudly with his eyes squeezed shut. The rings moved over his entire body.


	17. Butter Biscuits!

Moi-Moi: Hey guys! This is it! We've made it to the end of the story. "The _end!?"_ you ask while pulling out your pitchforks and torches. Yes, dear friends. The end. Don't worry. There will be more at a later date. ;) I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! :D

~:~

Danny curled up on his side as he tried to gain control of his breathing. His eyes blinked several times as he stared at Kagome's knee. Why wasn't she saying anything? He'd just transformed in front of her. She should be running, panicking, screaming, or doing some combination of the three. Closing his eyes with a shuddering breath, Danny curled up tighter. He almost didn't want to look up at her. He couldn't bear to see the look in her eyes. When he felt her hands on him, he jumped slightly.

"Oh! S-sorry, Danny. I didn't mean to hurt you," she said. With an astonished gaze, he looked up at her. "When you can move again, let me know. I'll help you home," she said with a small smile. Not trusting his voice, Danny gave a small, stiff nod.

The two didn't speak for several minutes. Danny was too busy focusing on a blade of grass, waiting for the impending freak out that Kagome was about to have. Personally, he was freaking out a little bit. She just said some made up words and sent Valerie flying! When he felt her hand touch his shoulder, he tensed. But she was just moving him to rest on her lap. Danny's eyes widened in surprise.

~:~

Sam nearly growled out loud. Where was Danny!? She hadn't heard any noises for a while. It was as if the battle had just ended. But Danny would have at least called. Right? Then again, he had no idea that she was walking around the park while looking for him.

Sam had just pushed a branch out of her way when she heard someone else's voice. " _Aw, man!"_

"That sounds like Valerie," Sam whispered before creeping forward slowly. Moving away some leaves, Sam looked ahead of her. It _was_ Valerie. The girl was kneeling in a small clearing with her smoking jet sled on her lap. Sam narrowed her gaze suspiciously.

"This thing is busted. What happened!? I _had_ him. I had Phantom right where I wanted him. And then Kagome had to show up!" Valerie bemoaned. "Where'd she even come from?"

Sam pursed her lips in thought. Kagome had found Danny? Maybe they were still around? Then why wasn't Valerie looking for them? Maybe Danny had gotten away!? As quietly as she could, Sam backtracked. Once she was far enough away so that her combat boots wouldn't be heard, she took off back the way she had come. She'd head to Danny's house. He was probably on his way there and needed help.

~:~

"Danny _Fenton_... Danny _Phantom_. I'm a little upset with myself for not figuring it out," Danny heard Kagome mutter. He smirked.

Danny stared up at the foliage above him with sleepy eyes. He felt drained, extremely fatigued, confused beyond measure, and a little hopeful. Kagome knew his secret. She knew that he was secretly Danny Phantom. And she hadn't freaked out yet! In fact, she was taking care of him. It was almost too good to be true.

"How are you feeling now, Danny?" she asked him as she rubbed his cheek.

Danny looked up at her from where he was resting his head on her lap. "Better. I'll try to move in a few minutes," Danny said. Just a _few more_ minutes.

"Well, don't force yourself. I'm not an ecto-biologist like my mom. But I'm sure that being injected with blood blossom extract will have some damaging effects on a ghost," Kagome replied.

"...Half-ghost," Danny corrected hesitantly.

" _Half_ -ghost? I... Didn't think that was possible," Kagome responded.

"I didn't think it was possible for people to have magic powers," Danny replied.

Kagome flushed slightly. "Oh... Yeah. _That,"_ she started. "Would you believe me if I said that witches are just as real as ghosts are?"

"After everything I've seen in my life, I think I'd be ready to believe anything," Danny joked. When Kagome giggled in response, Danny felt himself relax a little. "How long have you been a witch?"

"Um... My whole life? I was born one. You can't really become one. It's a hereditary thing," Kagome answered.

"So, your mom?"

"And my dad. I guess he wasn't wrong about you being "spooky". But I don't think he saw this coming," Kagome said with a small laugh. "How long have you been half-ghost?"

"Two years. I was downstairs in my parents lab with Sam and Tucker. I was showing them the Ghost Portal. Sam convinced me to go inside and check it out. When I did, I accidentally pressed the "On" switch that was inside. I remember a flash of light and then it felt like I was be electrocuted. It didn't last long, but I passed out anyways. When I woke up, I had ghost powers," Danny explained.

Kagome's eyes widened at him. "So, you decide to use your powers to protect Amity Park? That's... Actually a really noble thing to do, Danny. You put your life in danger on a regular basis. _Wow_. I've never thought of helping anyone with my magic," Kagome said.

"It just felt like the right thing to do. You know?" Danny said casually. She thought he was _noble._

"Everything is starting to make sense now. You and Sam were worried about me hunting ghosts because you are one," Kagome frowned. She looked down at him with such an intense gaze that Danny was left speechless. "I would never hurt you on purpose, Danny. I don't care what anyone says. You're my friend before anything else."

"W-what? What _who_ says?" Danny asked with a puzzled frown.

~:~

Vlad stared up at the Takahashi's front door with uncertainty in his midnight blue eyes. After swallowing thickly, he climbed the steps and knocked on the door loudly. After about a minute of waiting, Vlad was about to turn tail and leave. "I guess no one's home," he reasoned to himself before turning to leave. But before he could step down, the door swung open. Vlad froze.

"Oh. It's _you,"_ Judai said with a glare as he stared up at Vlad.

"Hello, Judai. Is your mother home?" Vlad asked, trying to keep the nervousness from his voice.

"No," Judai responded flatly.

" _Judai!"_ Vlad heard Kimiko's voice call out from within the house. He watched Judai roll his eyes before stepping to the side to let Vlad in. Vlad stepped in, immediately smelling something delightful. "In the kitchen, Vlad!"

Taking his time, Vlad entered the kitchen with Judai on his tail. He spotted Kimiko chopping up something next to a large pot that was bubbling away on the stove. She raised her head to smile at him before returning to her work. "Is everything alright, Vlad?" she asked him.

"They are for right now. But I'm not sure if they will stay that way," Vlad said before taking a seat at the kitchen table.

Kimiko shot him a questioning look before saying, "Judai, why don't you head upstairs for a minute?"

Judai scoffed. "Don't mind if I do," he said before leaving the room.

When she heard his bedroom door close, Kimiko washed and dried her hands before joining Vlad at the table. "You look troubled. Is everything alright?"

"No. Not really. Something that Daniel said has been bothering me lately," Vlad answered. "I haven't been completely honest with you, Kimiko."

"Oh?" Kimiko asked. Her eyes narrowed. "Is this something to do with Maddie?"

"No! Of course not. I was completely honest about Maddie. This has to do with _me,"_ Vlad answered. Why was he doing this again? Right. Because he felt guilty and hopeful. Guilty because his entire relationship _was_ based on a lie (thank you very much for pointing that out Daniel). And hopeful that Kimiko would take the news well. Or at least that she wouldn't cast him aside. She seemed very understanding and sympathetic towards ghosts. She wouldn't hold being half-ghost against him. If she did, Vlad would have Skulker track down that wishing ghost and she'd just fix the situation for him. No harm, no foul.

"Is there something wrong?"

"I haven't been completely honest, my dear. It's not that I've _lied._ I've just... omitted the truth," Vlad answered while wrapping his hands around Kimiko's. "I do hope you won't hate me for this."

"I could never hate you, Vlad. You've been so good to me. You're even trying to form a relationship with my children. Judai may not be exactly _open,_ but I know Kagome doesn't think badly of you. And neither do I. Just say what you have to say," Kimiko replied with an easy smile.

"It's difficult to say. It's better if I show you," Vlad said. " _Don't_ do this! It's not worth it! Get out of there _NOW!_ ", a little voice yelled at him. Desiree can fix anything that goes wrong. But nothing will go wrong! Vlad shut his eyes and tensed as he transformed.

He nearly ran for it. He could hear her gasp softly and he was _so_ close to flying off. She wasn't saying anything. He probably shocked her into a catatonic state. He'd been wrong to do this. Where was that wishing ghost!? He'd find her now! She would fix this! Fix everything!

"So, I _was_ right."

Vlad blinked his red eyes confusedly before looking up at Kimiko. She was _smirking_ at him! "What?" he replied unintelligently.

"I was right. I had a feeling that the Wisconsin ghost was a new subspecies," she clarified before patting his hands with a smile. Vlad watched her get up to continue tending to her meal. "Are you staying for dinner, Vlad?"

"You aren't surprised? Shocked? _Disgusted?"_ Vlad questioned, quickly getting up to follow her.

"Vlad, I've known that you were part ghost for some time now. I was just waiting until you felt comfortable enough to say something," Kimiko said.

Vlad's jaw dropped. " _Unbelievable!_ How did you know? Did Daniel tell you?"

"No. I figured it out when I saw the reaction you had to Kagome the first time you touched her. Not only that, I could sense the ghostly energy in you," Kimiko answered.

"But _how?"_

"Because I'm a witch. And a _darn_ good one, too," Kimiko said proudly.

Vlad frowned. "Witches don't exist," he dismissed.

"So, only ghosts exist? I assure you that witches are _very_ real," Kimiko said and gave her pot a few stirs. "Let me ask you something. Have you ever gotten a strange feeling when you were around me? Like you had to get away as fast as you could?"

Rather than use his words, Vlad nodded once. It had been a puzzling feeling to have. He wanted to stay, but he wanted to leave at the same time. Everything about her physical presence seemed to set him on edge while her personality calmed him to no end.

"It's a survival instinct. Witches and ghosts aren't known to get along. Most witches make it their task to keep ghosts in line. You know? Stop them from terrorizing humanity too much. It's to the point where most ghosts just avoid us altogether. You've noticed the lack of ghost attacks lately.

"When you touched Kagome, the pain you felt was her magic simmering just under the surface. She's still young and hasn't gotten full control over it yet. I'm sure she'll be accidentally shocking you for a little while longer. Luckily, Judai isn't showing any signs of magic yet. I'm afraid to think what he would do to you if he was," Kimiko joked.

Vlad couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did she _really_ expect him to believe that she was a witch? She and Kagome had magical powers that made them a threat to him? He had to admit that what she was saying did explain a few things. But, _honestly!_

"Vlad, to be perfectly honest with you, it doesn't bother me that you're a ghost. However, I'm not too fond of the things the _Wisconsin Ghost_ has done in this town. But, I'm sure you had a good reason for it," Kimiko suggested with a raised brow and her arms folded over her chest.

Vlad blinked twice before gulping loudly. At the serious look in her eyes, Vlad felt more worried than he had felt before he'd transformed. He frowned. "Butter biscuits," he cursed to himself. At least she wasn't kicking him out.

~:~

Moi-Moi: You've just reached the end of the story. Congrats! :D

As I have said before, this is a trilogy so there are still two more stories to read (and for me, write). Where this story was a bit more dramatic and romance-driven, the other two will be more action orientated. Now that the foundation has been laid, it is time to build a sturdy house of action, adventure, and small dashes of humor. ;)

So, be on the lookout for the sequel: "Drowning in Power" coming soon to ! ;)


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